Hogwarts Rumble!
by Raizen1125
Summary: Daphne Greengrass was a very confusing girl. If there was anything that Harry was sure of, it would be that. Arien Carstair's life was pretty dull...At least until he met a French Veela. Hopefully she won't set him on fire. HxD,FxOC. A gagfic about hypothetical romcom anime Harry Potter. Not a serious story. Prepare to joypuke your face off. And maybe laugh along the way.
1. Chapter 1

**Shit guys. I told myself I wouldn't write this until I was at least 5 more chapters into Crazy Life. However, the idea is festering in my skull and won't go away. So here we are. **

**I've been a long time consumer of Haphne in the HP fanfic community, with Harry and Fleur being my second favorite. However, I've only seen a few where Daphne is a spoiled pureblood princess. In those, I've had a few gripes with how shit plays out, mostly because my being demisexual means I'm annoyed if she doesn't go meet to feels to romance to sex. If this delicate formula is interrupted, then I don't enjoy them as much. **

**The basis for Daphne in this fic will be Eri Sawachika from School Rumble, who is (in my opimion) one of the best written female characters in any medium in terms of character complexity and development. **

**This will essentially be a series of connected one shots, of the fluffy and funny variety. Hope you enjoy. The first is in the first year. **

**IMPORTANT NOTE: Unlike most authors who just shove an OC down your throat a few chapters in, I gave you the option to skip those chapters, though I don't recommend it, because I think it's an enjoyable read and they'll eventually encounter each other briefly. But whatever. If you don't like it, then don't read it. I write this to make myself happy, and if it makes you happy too, great! If not, then that's out of my hands. **

Chapter 1: I don't like you or anything!

Harry Potter didn't often think of himself as anything but a freak. Up until recently, he'd thought he was some sort of unwanted child of two irresponsible adults. Yeah...turns out his relatives were just the worst kind of people. However, the revelation that he was a wizard, in an oddly expositional fashion from the rather large teddy bear of a person named Hagrid, was monumental. No longer was he the boy whose parents were dead nobodies! Now he was the boy whose parents were dead somebodies!

If Harry stopped to really think about it, he might have been slightly concerned by that sort of logic, but who cared?! He was a wizard, baby! As it happened, he was currently shopping in the hub of Diagon Alley for his school supplies. Turns out, wizarding school supplies were very different. For starters, he could pick a pet to bring with him. He figured a snake would be the coolest choice, since he could talk to them and all. Yeah, turns out, that wasn't exactly a common trait in the wizarding world, but since he was apparently something of a celebrity, he was able to get away it. His snake, whom he had dubbed Mr. Slithers, was now wrapped around his shoulders, because Harry was 'sssssuper warm"

And so, Harry and Mr. Slithers next found themselves waiting for robe measurements in Madame Malkin's, a wizarding tailor. However, they were not the only ones. Inside, was a regal looking girl with piercing blue eyes and blonde hair which was tied into two pig tails that clung to the side of her head. She glanced at him, but said nothing.

"I don't like her." Came Mr. Slither's snakey voice.

"Don't be rude, Mr. Slithers. She could be very nice." This caused the girl to squeak in fright, pulling away slightly from him and his snake. She pointed an accusatory finger at him.

"D-Did you just talk to that snake?" She asked shakily, clearly unsure of what to make of this.

"Um, yes I did. His name is Mr. Slithers. He was saying ...nice things about you." She glanced at him suspiciously, clearly not buying it.

"What did he say?" She asked in a dangerous tone, one that hinted at pain should she not like Harry's answer.

"He...said you have really pretty hair," Harry paused, before continuing "I told him I thought your eyes were much more pretty in comparison." The girl flushed beet red at that, and proceeded to huff angrily, before turning her attention on the wall.

"I thank you for the compliment. What is your name?" She asked in a quiet tone minutes later.

"It's...Harry, Harry Potter." He spoke nervously. The girl immediately refocused her gaze on him, mouth slightly agape.

'THIS IS THE BOY MY FAMILY BETROTHED ME TO?!' She wailed to herself internally. She had not been pleased to find out her grandparents had come to an agreement with Harry's about a betrothal contract. Nothing ironclad, but they had wished a healthy bond between their two houses. It had been desired to come into effect after her parent's generation, because Potter's father was supposedly smitten with some muggleborn. However, before her thoughts could continue, she became acutely aware of Harry being in her face.

"Are you okay? You went pale as a ghost for a moment."

"I am fine, it is not trouble! I am Daphne Isabella Greengrass! I am sure your are charmed to finally make my acquaintance." She spoke haughtily, knowing that he would realize how lucky he was to be her betrothed.

"It's nice to meet you, Daphne. I actually only discovered this world a few hours ago. My relatives hate magic, so it's nice to meet somemone my own age here."

Internally, Daphne was perturbed by the fact her betrothed was not kissing the ground she was walking on, or showering her with praise. Surely his relatives were smart enough to suck up to him? He was the heir to a massive fortune after all, and they had to have known about the contract.

Daphne was going to speak, but Madame Malkins chose that moment to reappear with Daphne's clothes, and ushered the girl out of the store. It happened so quickly that Daphne only realized after she'd reunited with her parent's that she hadn't gotten a chance to tell Harry they were to be married.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

4 months later...

Harry was wandering around the castle aimlessly. He'd gotten separated from his new friends Ron and Hermione. He was currently on one of the second floor corridors, idly taking in the sights with Mr. Slithers, who was wrapped around his neck for warmth, as the snake detested being away from 'hissss ssspace heater'. At any rate, if Harry didn't find something to do soon, he was going to have to do homework with Hermione which was not a fun prospect. The castle itself was still chilly from the winter cold, January's icy temperatures still permeating throughout the castle despite the innate warming charms placed throughout the school. As he rounded a corner, he was grabbed from behind and yanked into an empty classroom.

'Welp, this is how I die, I guess.' Harry thought drolly. The door shut behind him, and he heard soft footsteps walk from behind him and into his field of vision. The annoyed visage of Daphne Greengrass stared at him, her blonde hair still in their twintail style, and her look of annoyance slowly shifted into one of haughty indifference. This just made Harry more confused, as he didn't know what he'd done to annoy the somewhat hostile and arrogant girl.

"Um, hello Daphne. What can I do for you today?" He spoke somewhat hesitantly. She could be one of those stalkers he read about in some of Hermione's story books. "You're not going to murder me...right?"

Whatever she expected him to say, that was not it. Her mouth hung agape and her blue eyes widened. "W-What?! No! I needed to talk to you, that's all." She spoke hastily, starting to appear slightly flustered. Harry took a moment to observe the girl. She wore the typical Hogwarts uniform, with the Slytherin colors proudly displayed on her robes, which were impeccably taken care of. All in all, she was a drastic contrast to his own disheveled appearance, with clothes that didn't fit, old glasses, and an untamed mop of black hair.

Daphne coughed, to either cover up her embarrassment at him taking in her appearance, or to regain his attention. Harry shook his head, deciding to humor this...pushy girl.

"Well, you certainly grabbed my attention. What do you need, Daphne?" He asked patiently, though he felt Mr. Slithers idly glance between the two of them for some reason, before the snake decided they were both stupid and went back to sleep. Daphne got flustered at his manner of address.

"S-so forward! I did not give you leave to address me by my first name, Potter!" She stammered out, her cheeks slightly flushed.

"Oh. Sorry. My relatives didn't really teach me social do's and don'ts, so I didn't mean to offend you." He apologized quickly, though he wasn't sure why she seemed to be upset.

"I-it is no trouble, Potter. It is not like we were oddly pleased or anything! You may address us as such...if you want..." She spoke emphatically at first, but grew quieter near the end. She was fidgeting, and was she...blushing? This girl was definitely weird, and Harry wasn't sure how to handle her.

"Um...okay...Daphne?" At her nod, Harry continued, "What did you need to talk to me about?"

At this, Daphne's face got redder, and the fidgeting intensified.

"W-well, as you know, our grandparents drew up a contract for us before we were even born, so I was wondering how you wished to proceed."

Harry's confusion doubled, "Contract for what?"

"M-Marriage, you fool! We are betrothed!" Daphne's face went from pretty red to nuclear as she said it, though whether it was from anger or embarrassment was unclear. Her statement was what got Harry's attention though. In fact, she derailed his entire thought process pretty effectively.

"We're...to be married? And I'm assuming that you don't wish to be?" He asked without giving her a chance to really interject, "Okay, that's fine. I wouldn't want to be engaged to me either. You're a pretty girl, and I'm boring old me. So I'm assuming you and your family want to call it off?"

Daphne opened her mouth to say something, but paused. Surely Harry would not pass over being betrothed to someone of her station so easily right? Was he making fun of her?! She would show him!

"You think to make fun of me!? Do you think you are better than us, Potter?!" She spoke angrily at him, much to his confusion.

"Um, no? I just realize you probably come from royalty or something, and we're only betrothed because I somehow destroyed a dark lord as a baby, which is why you hate me. I'm sure you'd rather fall in love with someone worthy of your station right?"

Daphne was once more given pause. Okay, he clearly wasn't making fun of her. But she did not understand why he was so adamant that he was unworthy. Did he not realize he was practically royalty himself!

"W-we hate you for different reasons! Do not presume to know our thoughts!" She stammered out, before she coughed to regain her composure. "I suppose I could do worse, though." Harry was now just confused.

"Why would you want to stay betrothed if you hate me?"

"That's- We-!" Before she could convey her thoughts, the chime rang through the corridors alerting students that it was time for the next class period. Harry looked at her, and gave a rather apologetic smile.

"We can talk this over more later okay?" He paused, weighing his next words carefully so as not to offend the girl. "If you want, after we discuss it more I will write to Gringott's to dissolve the contract. See you later!"

Before Daphne could say anything else, he had run off. Without her giving him leave to do so!

"Grrr...I'll show you, Potter! You shall beg for my hand in marriage before this is done!"

To be continued...

**So this is a little side project. I may be spreading myself thin, but I became a huge fan of how Yojimbro told his amusing romance stories for the Naruto fandom, so I wanted to try my hand at one for one of my favorite pairings ever. If you liked the style of romcom, check out his stuff! They're as fluffy as they are amusing. The format will mostly be oneshots with slight deviations from canon set in each year per chatper. That's about it. Until next time guys! Raizen out.**


	2. Chapter 2

**We are back again. Mostly because I'm bored of all the games I have, and despite only paying half price, New Gundam Breaker was extremely disappointing. **

**So I now write a second chapter of this while I'm formulating my next chapter outline for Crazy Life. **

**DominoMags and I agreed. I've unleashed the pandora's box of anime Harry Potter style fics. If someone else did it before me, then I completely choose to scapegoat them instead. **

**Chapter 2: Pay Attention to Me!**

So the previous year at school was fairly unusual for Harry. He'd learned he was a wizard, gotten a talking snake, found out he was some sort of Golden boy, is betrothed to a scary and very confusing blonde girl, outwitted a three headed dog, and killed his Defense teacher with his magic fingers. Suffice to say, Harry had seen more people die than most, which surprisingly didn't really effect him much. That in and of itself should have concerned him, but you had to crack a few eggs to be a savior right?

Maybe.

Anyway, Harry was currently sitting alone on the train to Hogwarts, quietly rubbing Mr. Slithers on the head as he watched the scenery pass by the window. He'd had the presence of mind to lie to some creature that had decided to 'save' him. He can only imagine what the thing would have done had he told the truth. He was taken from his thoughts when he heard the compartment door open, prompting him to glance over at who had decided to pay him a visit. To his surprise, it was Daphne, and she did not look happy.

"Potter, you better have a good reason for ignoring my letters!" She spoke heatedly, before she went slightly red in the face. "It is not like I was worried or wanted to hear from you though! I just wanted to inform you of my superior progress over the summer!"

Harry just looked confused at her. "How could I have made any progress when I live with muggles who hate magic?"

She had the decency to look embarrassed, but that didn't stop Daphne from doubling down. "Then we win by default of course." She drew a hand to her face and laughed in a dramatic and extra fashion, a smirk on her face. "I could be convinced to assist you in catching up, however." She cast her gaze at Harry, who had resumed looking out the window, causing Daphne to twitch in annoyance. Her plan to spend time with him was failing miserably.

"No thank you, Daphne. I wouldn't want to waste your time. I'm not great with magic, and you're a pureblood, meaning you get to practice and have more access to stuff than I do. I'm glad you had a productive summer though." He spoke genuinely, but was dismissive of her offer. He genuinely didn't see a point in doing so.

"B-b-but how else will you improve, Potter?" She asked, trying to convince him that he needed her help.

"I'll just ask Hermione or something. She's smart and also a good teacher. If I need anything, I can just ask her."

Daphne was twitching significantly now. Who was this Hermione, and why was her future husband going to her for help!? Harry should want her help, not this...hussy's!

"Is my help not good enough for you, Potter?!" She tried not to yell at him, but her anger got the better of her.

"You always seem so annoyed by my presence so I just assumed it would be best not to bother you. I also sent a letter to Gringotts about the contract, so they could dissolve it. Your parents signatures are all that is needed now." Daphne's heart sank at that. Was she really so repulsive to him? Did she really make him think she hated him that much? That's not what she wanted at all!

"You did not have to dot that! You are not...terrible in terms of potential spouses for me." She tried to speak without getting angry at his lack of understanding over contact culture in their world.

"It's not a big deal. You should be free to marry someone who makes you happy, not because your grandparents said to." At this, Harry turned back to face her, his brilliant green eyes meeting her blue ones. In that moment, Daphne couldn't help but think how cool he looked, and how sweet he was. This just fueled her annoyance at him brushing her off constantly. Didn't he get mad at anything?!

"Fine! It's not like we wanted to marry you or anything!" She turned and stormed out of the compartment, slamming the door behind her. She had a letter to write, and she would not be stopped! She would not let Harry throw away her contact just like that!

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

6 months later...

This year had been rough for Harry so far. Between being labeled 'The Heir of Slytherin', the pertrifications that plagued the school, and the enchanted bludger that just shattered his arm, he wasn't having a great year. So here he was, sitting in the hospital wing, playing word association games with Mr. Slithers to pass the time. He was about to start another round when he heard someone open the doors to the hospital wing. He for some reason felt apprehensive, and the slow soft footsteps filled him with dread. He saw a silhouette behind the curtain, before it was pulled aside angrily, revealing a very pissed off Daphne Greengrass.

"Potter! Do you have no bloody sense of self-preservation!" She almost sounded...concerned, before she caught herself "Not like I care or anything. If you want to get yourself killed, then who am I to tell you otherwise." She took a seat next to his bed, and then pretended to examine her nails in a cool fashion, though she flicked her gaze over to him periodically.

Harry was just as confused by the girl as always. Why the hell was she even here, unless she hated him enough to come watch him in pain.

"Do you really hate me enough that you'd come watch me in pain, Daphne? What did I do to you to make you hate me so much?"

"N-no! That's not it! I just-!"

Harry cut her off. "Then why do you keep coming around? You clearly don't like me at all, and while you don't seem like you do it at Malfoy's direction, I just don't get why you come around just to act like you're better than me. I tried to do what I thought would make you happy, which was annul the contract, but that just seemed to make you madder and more scathing in your insults." Harry spoke emphatically, clearly trying to understand why this confusing girl just would not leave him in peace.

"No, Harry, I-" She stopped herself, and took a breath. "I am sorry."

Whatever Harry had been expecting, it sure as hell wasn't that. "Huh?"

"Ohh sssssnap." Mr. Slithers helpfully interjected as well. Daphne let out a "meep" at the snake's presence, but would not be deterred.

"I do not mean to be so caustic and mean to you. I just want to be your friend." She told a half truth. She would be damned before she let this idiot know she liked him! Still, a bit of truth would solve some of their issues right?

"Then why? Why are you such a jerk sometimes?" Daphne's anger rose at his accusation, but she forced it back down. Getting mad would just make it worse, and potentially ruin any chance she might have with him in the future.

"I don't know. You just don't react to me like most people do, and I don't know how to handle it."

Harry didn't know what to make of her answer. He just shook his head, clearly not wanting to deal with the confused girl tonight of all nights.

"Look, I don't react to you because I don't want to offend someone of your station. You're clearly in the going places category, so I just try to avoid you so your won't get mad at me." Despite his efforts, she looked genuinely hurt by his statement. Upon hearing this, she rose to her feet, and made to leave.

"I am sorry that I trouble you, Harry. I'll just go." She started to leave, but she slipped on the curtain that was precariously on the floor. She landed on her ankle, and Harry was sure he heard a crack. Daphne let out a whimper, which made Harry pause before he laughed at the oddly comical scene of her slipping like a cartoon character.

He sighed, before calling for Madame Pomfrey. She wasn't going to be happy.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxx

A few months later...

Harry now sat on the Hogwarts Express on his way back to his relatives for the summer. He'd essentially saved the day. Who knew Parlselmouths were immune to basilisk stares? According to his snake, he was 'ssstupid' for not knowing. Sure,the basilisk had been blind by that point...but still! He had foiled Lord Moldyshorts again, so that counted for something. Mr. Slither was basking in the sun from the window, soaking it up along with the headpats Harry was giving him. Harry paused mid pat when his compartment door opened, revealing a very angry looking Daphne Greengrass. Deja vu aside, Harry looked comfused, she stalked over to him, slapped him across the face, and then hugged him. Harry was really not sure what to make of it.

"I heard you almost died, and I didn't have a chance to hit you sooner for being stupid." She mumbled into his shoulder.

"Better late than never?" He stated in a questioning manner, unsure of what the hell to make of her hugging him. "You can let go of me anytime now." She must not have realized she was hugging him, because she went beet red in the face, before jumping away from him.

"IreallygottagoawaynowtalktoyoulaterBYE!" She stammered out before rushing out of the compartment.

"What a sssstrange, sssstrange girl." Mr. Slithers commented lazily from his perch. As Harry resumed his headpats, he couldn't help but agree with his pet snake.

To be continued...

xxxxxxx

**Yet another fluffshot down. This stuff gives me good practice because I've never wrote a tsundere character before. I'm definitely going to play this up more in Crazy Life. Totally seeing Tea going crazy sometimes when someone looks at Ben funny. **

**I need to get back on my streaming schedule as well. My games call, and I really want to do a live writing stream. For those who are new to me, my twitch is Knight2518, feel free to stop by. **

**Until next time,**

**Raizen out. **


	3. Chapter 3

**Another day of boredom at 2am, another chapter. I'm writing this before writing the actual thing, so I may try to make it longer. Dunno. **

Chapter 3: Dogfather, Plans, and Tsunderes.

According to most people Harry's age, time off from school allegedly enjoyable. He would emphatically disagree. First, his relatives turned a visit from Vernon's sister into a "make fun of Harry's dead parents". So he'd blown up Vernon's bitch of a sister. Too bad, so sad. Anyway, he was now hanging out in an empty playground with his all his stuff, with Mr. Slithers hanging on his shoulders under his jacket to avoid attracting attention from passersby. The playground was empty, save Harry, and it was your typical neighborhood playground. It had jungle gyms, swingsets, and the like, with Harry currently resting on a swing, idly pushing himself back and forth while he thought of a plan of action. The moon hung overhead as the most visible celestial body, and the light pollution blotting out everything else. The street lamps had just recently turned on, and were illuminating the various parts of the surrounding streets in buildings to contrast against the darkness of the night. Harry sighed, before looking down at his right shoulder, where his snake's head was currently resting at.

"Sssso Mr. Sslithersss, any sssuggessstionss?" Harry asked his snake, who for some reason often had reasonable courses of actions he would suggest to Harry. The snake looked at him, before focusing attention on a nearby bush.

"I would sssuggessst talking with the mandog that'sss watching you over there." Mr. Slither pointed with his nose over to a nearby bush, where a black dog slowly limped out of. Harry was a little on edge, but the dog didn't seem threatening, so Harry motioned for it to come over to him. The dog barked happily, before trotting over to him.

"Hey there, boy." The god rubbed his nose against Harry's hand, before sitting down before him. Mr. Slither was looking at the dog rather intently.

"Harry, that dog smells like a human. And not in the way that a dog actually usually smells of humans." Harry looked down at his snake, who was flicking its tongue out over and over. "I don't feel predatory vibessss from him though."

The dog looked slightly apprehensive, but didn't immediately run away. Harry looked at it a moment, before he moved his hand away from it, causing the dog to whine.

"Can you understand me?" He asked hesitantly at first, finding the situation a little odd. Who asks a dog a question like that? To his surprise, the dog appeared to nod.

"Okay...Are you a wizard?" At this, the dog hesitantly nodded. Harry felt a sliver of anxiety at this, but asked his next question nonetheless.

"Are you planning to hurt me?" At this the dog shook his head rigorously, saying 'no'. It then nuzzled his hand again.

"I want to take you at your word, but if we went some place secluded so you could transform back, would you be willing to let keep my wand on you as a precaution?" The dog nodded it's head again, though it definitely seemed slightly nervous. Harry stood from the swing, and glanced around, looking for an alleyway or something else secluded enough to talk to the disguised wizard freely. He spotted an alleyway in a nearby building, which was close enough that he wouldn't have to drag his things far. He pointed it out to the dog, before he went to gather his things. After he'd collected them all, he then walked over to the alleyway, the dog hugging his heels closely, tail wagging the whole way.

After they got deep enough into the alley so they wouldn't be disturbed, Harry placed his things on the ground, before he pulled out his wand, and pointed it at the dog.

He glanced at it, before speaking, "Okay, Mr. Dog. You can transform. Like I said, the wand is just a precaution, since I don't want to get attacked by someone when I don't have anywhere to stay currently. Okay?" At the dogs nod, its form began to shift, before it turned into a unhealthily skinny man, skin pale as if it hadn't seen the sun in years. His face was gaunt and narrow like he'd suffered from malnutrition for a long time. His long black hair was knotted and obscured his face. Harry took in the man's appearance, but didn't recognize him at all.

"Who are you?" Harry asked, though this caused the man croaked out a laugh.

"I would have been surprised if you'd remember me. The last time I saw you was just before James and Lily were killed." His voice was shakey, and his sentenced was finished with a rather bitter tone. "I'm your godfather, Harry. I'm Sirius Black."

This was not what Harry had expected at all. Granted, he didn't really know what to expect, given the fact he was dealing with a man disguised as a dog, but still! He had a godfather! Or was it a dogfather?

"Godfather? But where have you been? Did you not want me?" Harry asked, suddenly feeling insecure. Even though he had not guarantee the man was telling the truth, he didn't seem like he was lying. In fact, the guy looked like he was barely able to stand, given how weak he seemed to be. Calming himself, he asked one important question "What happened to you after my parents died?" The man got a dark look on his face, clearly remembering something upsetting.

"I was the one who took you from Lily's-" He choked up a bit, before was able to continue "From your mother's arms, and gave you to Hagrid for safe keeping. I then decided to go after the one who betrayed your parents to You-Know-Who. You have to understand, Harry, You father was like a brother to me. When I found out he was dead because our friend, I saw red. I couldn't think of anything else but killing that bastard Pettigrew. It was the biggest mistake of my life. I should have stayed, and focused on you." Sirius choked out, his emotions getting the better of him.

Harry gulped at the man's emotional outpour. He didn't really have a lot experience dealing with things like this, because he'd never really had friends growing up. So he just thought to press on with another question. "What happened to you? Why weren't you around when I was growing up?" He asked his godfather, vulnerability clear in his voice.

"I've been in Azkaban for the past 11 years, pup. It's a wizarding prison, though it's more akin to hell on earth." Sirius shuddered, which sent him into a coughing fit. "I was thrown in there without a trial, because they thought I butchered a bunch of muggles and Peter Pettigrew."

"Did you really butcher them?"

"No! I was chasing Peter because he's the one who sold your parent's out to You-Know-Who. I wasn't thinking, and before I realized what was happening, the bastard cut off his thumb, and used his animagus form to escape, though not before blowing up the street and killing a bunch of muggles in the process. I started to laugh hysterically because little Peter Pettigrew had played me like a fiddle."

"So you're a fugitive?"

"That's right, pup. I actually was the first to break out of Azkaban, though that's probably not something to brag about since I'm supposed to be a responsible adult." Sirius with a laugh, before he coughed again.

"Do you think you could prove your innocence if you were granted a trial?" Harry asked, the gears in his head whirling.

"Absolutely, though we'd either need Dumbledore on board or have Pettigrew in our custody before we push for one." Sirius spoke in a serious manner, seeing what Harry was getting at.

"Okay, well then we have a letter to write, and a plan to draw up. But first..." Harry took this opportunity to hug his godfather, who hugged him back. It might have been the first hug from an adult figure in his entire life, and Harry relished the experience.

Xxxxxxxx

Daphne was annoyed that she couldn't find Harry. It was the third week of classes, and she'd barely seen him at school at all. Apparently, there was a big muck up at the Ministry of Magic in relation to his apparent godfather Sirius Black. According to the reports by the Daily Prophet, his godfather was exonerated for the murder of Peter Pettigrew, who was apparently the real culprit in the murder of several muggles back on the night You-Know-Who was defeated. Pettigrew even had the Dark Mark, which corroborated Black's story that Peter was also the one who sold out the Potter's to You-Know-Who. It was such a disaster for the Ministry that it caused a no confidence vote against Minister Fudge, and the Ministry had to pay out a huge sum to Black because they'd tossed the head of an Ancient and Most Noble House in Azkaban without a trial. Daphne shook her head and slapped her cheeks lightly to psyche herself up. Today was the day she told Potter how she felt. Sure, they'd barely spent any time together, and sure she'd taken to following him around in hopes of chances to get to know him better! That didn't mean her feelings weren't true! But lately he'd been eyeballing that hussy Cho Chang! She would show him! She would show him that she was clearly the best fit for him! She just had to find him first!

Little did she know she wouldn't have her opportunity until August of next year due to wacky circumstances.

Xxxxxxxx

September...

Daphne was standing at the entrance of the Great Hall, waiting for Potter to show up! Surely he had to eat sometime! Breakfast was the most important meal of the day! As she waited, she saw his two friends (Granger and the Weasel?) walking into the Great Hall. Trying to figure out where Harry was, she leaned in to hear their conversation.

"I can't believe Harry was called to the Ministry again. Apparently, Sirius needed him there for some paperwork on custody and won't be back until tonight." Granger spoke in her typical know it all manner.

Weasel just nodded, not really awake enough to contribute more to the conversation.

Daphne was furious! She had woken up early just so she could talk to Potter without interruption! Was the powers at be working against her? (**AN: Yes I am, for the sake of eventually adorableness. lul**) This was irksome. She'd have to try something on a day she wasn't stuck in classes all day or doing homework.

Xxxxxxx

October...

Daphne had tracked Harry to the gamekeeper's hut. She didn't know that Harry was friends with the half-giant until today. He was very cute when he listened to the larger man's stories about his parents. She blushed at her own traitorous thoughts, before shaking her head. She leaned in to get an idea for what the two were talking about. She'd confess to Harry after he left the hut.

"Hagrid? It's the anniversary of my parent's deaths...Will you tell me another story about them? Something about when they found out I was gonna be born?" Harry asked in a small voice, his sadness over his missed chances of knowing his parents showing clearly for anyone who was watching.

"Well, 'Arry, I think Sirius would be 'ore suited ta this, I can tell ya about when yer Mum broke the news ta me." The giant spoke softly, realizing how important this was to Harry.

"I'd like that a lot, Hagrid." Harry spoke with a small smile, grateful to hear anything he could about his parents.

Daphne stood up from where she was listening in. This wasn't something she should intrude upon, and confessing on this day would just make their anniversary's bittersweet. Harry needed this day to grieve over the parents he'd never get to know. She couldn't take that away from him. As she walked back towards the castle, she told herself "Next time for sure."

xxxxxxxxx

November...

"He slept through the entirety of Saturday?! WHO DOES THAT?!"

xxxxxxxx

December...

"I CAN'T BELIEVE MY PARENTS CHOOSE THIS YEAR TO MAKE ME COME HOME FOR CHRISTMAS! WHAT INCONVENIENCE!"

xxxxxx

January...

"Who the hell needs two hours before a Quidditch game to get ready?!"

xxxxxxxx

February...

"I'm going to kill Malfoy and his goons for causing my precious Harrikens to almost fall off his broom!"

xxxxxx

And so on, until she'd arrived home for the summer, much to her consternation.

"The next time I see him, I tell him! No matter what!" Daphne told herself. She would be Harry's girlfriend one way or another. Even if she had to beat his fangirls off with a shovel, she WOULD make Harry understand her feelings!

To be Continued...

xxxxxxxx'

**I decided to take this fic a little more seriously than I had been, putting more effort into it. I realized I wasn't fully satisfied with how I'd handled it thus far, so from here on out, the snap shots will be more fleshed out than before. You guys are awesome for giving me over 30 follows in the like two days this has been up! And slightly disheartening because I still don't know why people won't read Crazy life :c Oh well. Thanks for reading! See you next time. **

**Raizen out!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Holy crap this fic is popular. I pass out today around 12 pm and wake up 7 hours later to find it jumped a thousand views and 30 favorites in that time frame. You guys rock.**

**Also, linking my twitch with my FFN was the best decision I ever made. Being able to better interact with you guys, and even take your suggestions for my stories and even just talk writing is really cool, and I'm glad twitch has such a platform to facilitate that. :) Feel free to come hang out guys! I love interacting with my readers. Always have, always will. **

**Anyways, here's the chapter, so I'll stop being a mushy idiot now. :p**

Chapter 4: I like you, i-idiot!

If someone had told Harry that he would end up at the Quidditch World Cup this summer, he would have laughed at them. Mostly because he didn't know that was even a thing until a few days ago. His dogfather had gotten tickets to the game, specifically box seats. Though, Sirius was acting very suspicious, particularly whenever Harry mentioned that they'd have the box to themselves.

Currently, we find our protagonist, his dogfather, and Remus Lupin in Black family home of Gimmauld Place, standing on the couch in their boxers and singing along to songs by the Rolling Stones on Sirius' enchanted record player. Sirius had apparently gotten the thing from Lily as a gift, and it still worked despite his involuntary sightseeing trip to Azkaban. They were enjoying the downtime from responsibilities, since life had been a little hectic. The house itself was a little dreary, though Sirius stated that was a direct byproduct of his relatives being top tier buzzkills. He was rather ambiguous about the idea that they might have eaten cute and small animals just for shock value at parties. It looked like a typical rich families house would: large rooms lined with expensive looking, albeit dark, objects. Despite their best efforts to open up the house and make it look like a real home, there was still dust that seemed to refuse to leave. Sirius jokingly stated this was a curse from his mother, though the sheen of cold sweat on his forehead made it clear he wasn't totally kidding. Harry's room was located on the second floor, and when Sirius had seen how precious little Harry actually owned when he'd unpacked everything, Sirius hugged him and took him on a shopping spree for whatever his heart desired. Now, his room was filled with a lot of books on defensive magic, some texts on Parselmagic, several model kits from a muggle toy store(apparently it was from a robot show that was big in Japan now that was slowly spreading across the globe), a lot of clothes(both muggle and wizarding), a stand for the broom Sirius had bought him last year, and a cat for the house that they'd named Whiskers. They'd gotten the cat so Sirius and Remus wouldn't be so lonely during the school year when Harry was away.

Besides their dancing like loons to music, they'd actually managed to get a muggle TV and VHS set to work, and when he'd discovered how much Harry liked those models, Sirius had gone on a mission with Remus to find a VHS collection for every episode of Gundam he could find, so they could watch it together. Ironically, Sirius had gotten into even more than Harry had(much to Remus' amusement), and they spent a fair bit of time over the summer working on models together in the kitchen, laughing and quoting the show to each other. What had really made Harry happy though, was when Sirius had enchanted the models that he'd built so far to reenact some of the battle from the show. When he had finished, Harry had mistakenly called Sirius 'Dad', and had profusely apologized, right up until Sirius had hugged the boy closely, and told him if that was how he wanted to see him, then he could call him "Dad" anytime he wished. Remus had dryly commented if that meant he had usurped Sirius's original title as the "cool uncle", which had gotten a laugh out of all of them.

It was a nice contrast to Sirius' duties on the Wizengamot. The new Minister of Magic, Rufus Scrimgeour had started his tenure by ordering the interrogation of Peter Pettigrew in front of the Wizengamot. That had been an earthshattering interrogation. It was revealed the Dark Lord wasn't dead, and that several "reformed" Death Eaters weren't so reformed. Several members of the Wizegamot, such as Lucius Malfoy, had been arrested for possessing the Dark Mark as well as being loyal Death Eaters. Scrimgeour had issued public statements about You-Know-Who being around, and warned citizens to be vigilant, and now was the time for the country to unite under one banner to thwart the Dark Lord once and for all. This had lead to sweeping changings in policy, with the Wizarding government seeing the most sweeping changes and activity it had in 11 years. Minister Scrimgeour had actually met with Dumbledore for recommendations on how to effectively counter You-Know-Who, and the ministry now gave Death Eaters a _zero_ tolerance policy. It was a one way ticket to the Veil. The only one granted amnesty was Severus Snape, who Dumbledore had assured was an inside man. This shocked Harry, but everyone privy to this knowledge was sworn to secrecy in order to protect both Severus and his cover.

For the first time in his life, Harry felt happy with his life outside of magic and school. Living with Sirius and Remus was like a dream come true for Harry. Even Mr. Slither liked the two older men, and Mr. Slither rarely liked anyone. Though he did like Daphne for some reason, which was weird to Harry. One sad fact was how much Mr. Slither liked Hermione, who was terrified of snakes after the incident in second year. If you've never seen a snake pout, it was strangely cute. Yes, life for Harry was looking up with his adoptive father and his cool uncle making up for lost time.

Xxxxxxxxx

The day of the Quidditch World Cup had arrived, and Harry was somewhat apprehensive. Sirius was still being somewhat sketchy whenever the topic of who would be joining them. Harry, Remus, and Sirius were making their way down the dirt path on the grounds surrounding the Cup Stadium. There were many different tents on each side of the path, forming a sea of canvas and nylon filled with the sounds of laughter and excitement that major sporting events could elicit. Harry actually was beginning to feel a bit of excitement him, though he had no clue who was playing in the final. He guessed one was Ireland from the green and white, but he didn't have a clue who the dark green and red was. After walking past the various sports fans and vendors selling merchandise for a few minutes, Sirius brought them to a halt in front of a new looking tent.

"Well, pup, here we are. Why don't you head on in first?" Sirius stated in a kindly voice, though you could detect a bit of anticipation in voice, though Harry wasn't sure why.

As Harry pulled back the curtain, he was greeted with a yell of 'SURPRISE'. Inside, were the several of Weasleys, Hermione, Neville Longbottom, and most surprisingly Daphne Greengrass(who was blushing and staring at the floor). The inside of the tent was set up like a cabin, with cozy furniture, a kitchen, two bathrooms, and two separate rooms with several cots for sleeping. It honestly nicer than the Dursley's house had been, which amused Harry quite a bit.

Harry was slightly floored at the appearance of all his friends, and turning to his godfather, he asked the question on his mind. "Dad, is this why you acted so fishy when I asked who was going to be here?"

Sirius rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, and merely nodded. Remus was just dragging a hand down his face in exasperation.

"I told you you should have just told him." Remus admonished lightly, before walking to the back to get a drink. He nodded to Mr. Weasley as he made his way back. Harry made his way towards his friends. Neville was a recent addition to their group, and to be honest, he reminded Harry a lot of himself. He had little confidence, which was why Harry had taken steps to reach out to the shy boy with his friendship. Harry never regretted doing so. He noticed that Daphne kept flitting her eyes to him then back to the floor, and she was hanging back from the group, clearly nervous. She was blushing and fidgeting, but Harry wasn't quite sure why she was here. Did she often make it a habit of visiting people she hates? Harry shook his head, but raised a hand timidly in greeting. She went beet red and slowly raised a hand in greeting back before returning her attention to pretty much anything except him. 'Does she really detest me that much that she can't even stand to look at me? I really need to get that contract dissolved as quickly as I can so she can be happy."

Harry was about to go over and speak to Daphne, but Neville and Ron rushed over to talk his ear off about the World Cup finals. Hermione actually took pity on the girl and went to talk to her, taking care that Harry couldn't hear them by leading them to the girls' room.

xxxxxx

"So...I was very surprised to see you here, Daphne. Harry is under the impression you despise him." Hermione said softly to the girl who she had formed a casual friendship with due to the many shared classes. Daphne actually looked devastated at that information, before she took a seat on the nearby bed and put her head in her hands.

"I...don't hate him at all. I'm just so used to having to dismiss people for trying to cozy up to me to try to use me, or only talk to me for my looks, that I act hostile automatically. I've had to act this way for so long, that I just don't know how to act otherwise." Daphne said, tears welling up in her eyes a bit. Hermione felt her heart go out to the usually spitfire of a girl so vulnerable.

"You love him, don't you?" At Hermione's question, Daphne went red in the face again, and buried her face in a pillow. Hermione didn't really know how to react to that. "I'll interpret that as a yes."

"I don't know how I fell in love with the idiot! It just happened! It's not my fault he gets this adorable content look on his face when he's reading something he finds interesting, or how sweet he looks when he takes a nap under a tree with his pet snake!" Her eyes were brimming with tears. "And he thinks I'm so repulsed by him and the fact we are betrothed! I've had to hold onto that contract so he will still have reasons to talk to me! Do you know what it's like, to be so incapable of conveying your own emotions because you're too proud to admit it?"

Hermione opened her mouth to respond, but closed it. Realizing Daphne needed to vent.

"I hate that I love him, because I don't know why he would ever pick me. He was the first boy who ever treated me like I was something other than a high end broodmare for their pureblood babies."

The way Daphne phrased it made Hermione want to laugh, but she knew that wizarding culture was rather regressed in someways in regards to women's roles in society, at least in the pureblood circles. Hermione had to ask the question on her mind, though.

"So why don't you tell him now?" It was a simple question, but it had weight to it. However, instead of causing the other girl to get more upset, Hermione saw a a fire light in the Daphne's eyes, though there was still hesitance.

"I don't know. Why would he even believe me? He thinks I hate him." Daphne spoke softly, her voice conveying all her insecurities.

"Harry...didn't have the best home life growing up." This got Daphne's attention, causing her attention to shift entirely to Hermione. "He's only told me a little, but from everything I've pieced together, it was really bad. How child services weren't called on his relatives, I don't know. But because of this, Harry has difficulties with people in general. You need to know that if you're serious about a relationship with him." Whatever hesitance Daphne had evaporated, and was quickly replaced righteous anger and concern.

"Depending on what they did, I might have to destroy his relatives." It was a simple statement, but it made Hermione respect the blonde girl a lot more. "I'm going to try and close the gap tonight. Somehow."

Hermione admired Daphne a bit more, if only for how determined the girl looked.

Xxxxxxxx

Chaos rang out through the forest, smoke obscuring surroundings. The night had been great right up until some Death Eater's had shown up to try and send a message. Granted, most of them had been taken out by this point due to the vamped up security, but it was still too soon for Harry to let his guard down. So here he was, running through the forest, looking for Hermione and Daphne. He'd been separated from them, and was now rushing to find them before something happened. She might hate him, but Daphne had been friendly and kind to Hermione, and that meant a lot to Harry. The shadows causes by the firelight made the overall darkness seem more encroaching than normal, a feeling of dread gripping at Harry's heels. He had to find them. He WOULD find them, regardless of how many roots he tripped over. He was about to change direction when he heard Daphne's voice.

"STAY AWAY FROM US!" Her voice was shrill with fear, echoing in the darkness. Harry rushed frantically towards it, desperate to save his friends. Coming up to where the voice had originated, he saw three hooded figures surrounding Hermione and Daphne, with Hermione bleeding from her head and unconscious, while Daphne had her wand trained on the figures. This made them laugh.

"Oh, come now. You're a pureblood and defending a mudblood? Disappointing." The first figure spoke.

"Just relax, blood traitor. You might even enjoy it. Same with the mudblood whore." Came the second figure's voice. At this statement, Daphne's eyes widened in fear, and she looked like she was verging on a panic attack. The third figure didn't say anything, merely flourished his wand. Harry went into hyper focus, looking around for something to given him a tactical edge. He spotted a large log, and immediately formed a plan. Quickly as he could, he banished the log towards the Death Eaters, and before it landed, hit the log with a blasting hex, but not before crying out "Daphne, get down!"

She threw up a shield, right as the splinters riddled the Death Eaters. Not one to rest idly, Harry rushed down into the clearing and threw stunners towards the now severely injured Death Eaters. With them out of the way, he rushed over to the girls, concern clear on his face.

"Daphne, are you ok-MMPH!" She cut him off by slamming her lips against his, his eyes going wide and feeling more confused than he ever had before. He felt her tears running down her cheeks as she kissed him, her desperation and relief tangible. After a minute or so, she pulled away. Realizing what she had done, she fell to her knees, burying her face in them. Harry first took a moment to send red sparks up in the air to get help from the Aurors in the area. Having done this, he quickly transfigured some ropes and ensured the death eaters were tightly bound, placing their wands in his pocket.

Knowing his friends and himself were now safe for the moment, he went over to Hermione to check on her. Satisfied that she was breathing okay, he transfigured a pillow for her, and placed it under her head, before moving over to check on Daphne.

"G' 'way." Daphne's muffled voice caught his attention before he could say anything.

"Daphne, are we going to talk about why you kissed me?" At the question, she seemed to shrink even further.

"I want to crawl in a whole and die. I kissed you before I told you I love you. What kind of confession is that?" She lifted her head enough so she wasn't muffled, but not enough to see her face.

"I don't know, a pragmatic one?" Harry tried to supply helpfully, his mind whirling from the revelation that the girl he thought hated him was actually in love with him. She laughed bitterly and without humor.

"Yeah, but what does it matter? You hate me." Her voice was heartbreakingly depressed. "I had this idea of how I'd tell you, despite how dishonest I usually am with how I feel."

"How long have you felt this way, Daphne?" His voice was soft and empathetic, trying to coax as much from her as he could so she wouldn't clam up.

"...End of first year..." Came her quiet response, the apprehension palpable in her voice, along with fear of impending rejection.

"What started it, if you don't mind me asking?" Harry asked curiously, wondering what he could have possibly done to earn her affection.

"You were the first boy to not treat me like some kind of trophy to be earned or only show interest because my family has money." She had slowly raised her head, allowing him to see her pretty blue eyes, and despite the dirt on her face and hair, Harry couldn't help but notice how beautiful Daphne was. Though, she started to blush a bit. "Plus, my parents always told me I was going to marry you, and while I was worried you'd be arrogant from your fame, my parents told me how kind your parents were. So I figured that we could make it work."

"Then why did you act like you hated me and couldn't stand to be around me?" Harry couldn't help but ask her, his desire to know what prompted her confusing behavior. She let out a bitter laugh in response.

"Because it's hard for me to be even be honest with myself, let alone you." He could tell she was about to cry again, so he knelt down and wrapped her in a hug. Daphne froze up, her steely blue orbs meeting his bright green ones.

"I'm sorry, Daphne. I'll try to be more cognizant of your feelings from now on, okay?" She didn't say anything, but she wrapped her arms around him and snuggled into his shoulder. "I can't say I love you back yet, because I had no idea you felt that way...but I'd like to give it a shot, okay?" He didn't know what compelled him, but he kissed the top of her head after he said that. She immediately pulled away before using her wand to transfigure a pillow, which she then proceeded to squeal into, before resuming her hugging him. He really did not know how to handle this girl at all.

Xxxxxxx

A lot had happened in the first term of the year. Harry had been involuntarily entered into the Triwizard Tournament, found out the Mad Eye Moody at the school was an imposter because of the Marauder's Map the Weasley twins had given him, tagged along with Dumbledore to capture said imposter, witnessed the interrogation of aforementioned imposter, and heard about Dumbledore going to where the weakened Darklord was, and had...dealt with him. Apparently the Dark Lord had begged for death, due to not being able to stand the positive emotions he apparently received from Harry. According to Dumbledore, the man had even told the headmaster where he had a bunch of artifacts that made him immortal on the promise that he "would make the fluffy mush stop". Dumbledore had found the whole situation amusing more than anything else, and had chuckled to himself as he quietly destroyed the tools of the Dark Lord.

He'd also spent a fair amount of time with Daphne, choosing to spend large amounts of time with her on Hogsmeade weekends, and they were considered to be the odd couple of the school. With her excitedly leading him places and simultaneously freaking out whenever he said something that made her happy. She also called him stupid a lot, but it always seemed to be a term of endearment. Currently, it was fifteen minutes before the Yule Ball, and he was waiting for Daphne outside the entrance to the Slytherin Common room. She'd been very adamant about being seen on his arm the entire evening, and them enjoying a nice walk to the ballroom. He was currently leaning against the corridor wall, and looking rather fashionable in his dress robes. Mr. Slither's had been adamant that he attend the ball as well as an "accessory", meaning he was draped over Harry's shoulders looking quite cozy and warm.

"Ten bucksss sssayss you sstutter when you sssee her." Mr. Slither's spoke lazily, one eye open looking at Harry. Harry went red in the face, before he cast his gaze at his reptilian friend.

"Sshut up. You don't know that!" He hissed back in Parseltongue, scaring some of the other strudents who'd traveled to the dungeons to pick up their dates. Harry also spotted Neville, who was apparently attending with Daphne's friend Lisa Turpin. The auburn haired girl apparently had a huge crush on the awkward Gryffindor boy, something that amused them both greatly. From what Harry could see, the girl practically had hearts for eyes when she looked at Neville, nuzzling his arm with her cheek. Hermione had actually mentioned he was going with Viktor Krum, who she apparently had gotten close too. Ron was going with a Ravenclaw named Su Li, who he had met through tutoring that Hermione had arranged. Harry was happy for his friends. As he was about to check the time again, he heard an feminine cough from behind his back, prompting him to turn around. He inhaled sharply at the sight before him. Daphne was wearing a deep green dress that hugged her figure perfecting, with a silver shawl draped over her shoulders elegantly, and her blonde hair tied into a pony tail that was hanging off her right shoulder. Her eyes were alight with curiosity, wondering what he had been about to do with his wand.

"Harry? What's wrong?" Her voice had a slight note of concern in it.

"You look...beautiful, Daphne. Breathtakingly so, in fact." There was a moment of pause, before what Harry had said sunk in, with Daphne's face slowly going nuclear red. The girl pulled her wand out from...somewhere, and cast a silencing charm on her self, before she soundlessly squealed in her hands. After a moment, she canceled the spell.

"T-thank you, Harry. You look nice as well, for an shaggy barbarian" He had learned to accept her barbs, knowing she didn't mean them. He found her tendency to insult people rather endearing. Shaking his head, he offered her his hand. She took it a step further, and took his whole arm, placing it between her rather robust...assets. This naturally made him blush, and her to be not so secretly delighted.

"Let's go have a nice evening, shall we?" She said with a gentle smile, which he still wasn't used to seeing on her face. However, every time he saw it, he fell a little bit harder for her.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The evening had been wonderful. All his friends had successful dates. One of the highlights of the evening had been watching Fleur Delacour set Roger Davies' pants on fire when he got too handsy, before she'd slapped him and strutted back to the Beuaxbatons carriage. Currently, Harry and Daphne were slow dancing on the floor, being one of the last couples to be there. Her head was resting on his shoulder, and she let out a content sigh.

"Curls, I don't want the night to end." She gently laid a kiss next to where her head was laying.

"I suppose I could find a time turner, and we could prolong it another few hours, Cinderella." He joked, which caused her to look up at him, half annoyed and half intrigued by the notion. She seemed to be a little confused by his nickname he'd called her.

"Cinderella?" Her head was tilted slightly in confusion.

"It's because you look like a fairytale princess and we are at a ball." She closed her eyes, but didn't freak out like she normally would have.

"There you go again. Saying such foolish things. Making me love you a little more each time." She was about to put her head back on his shoulder, but he stopped her. He laid a hand gently on the side of her face, gently rubbing her cheek with his thumb, causing her to look up at him with her blue eyes.

"Daphne...I love you." It was the first time he'd said it to her, mostly because it had never seemed like just the right moment to do so. She'd known he did, given how he showed it through his actions. Her eyes went wide at his simple declaration. She leaned into his hand, and closed her eyes, kissing the palm of his hand.

"I love you too, my beloved. So very much." She felt him pull her towards him, and their lips gently met, and despite the fact they weren't the only ones in the ballroom, it felt like they were, and it was the happiest moment of Daphne's life.

Xxxxxxx

To be continued...

**Another chapter, though I'll probably not keep up this pace for long. I've been wanting to get back to streaming regularly, and while this story is a nice break from Crazy Life, I don't want to get burned out, even though this is only going to be a relatively short fic. **

**Whatever the case is, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. :)**

**Raizen out!**


	5. HR Alternative Perspective, Profile

**So for a couple reasons, I decided to combine Hogwarts rumble with another idea I had for an OC character. I've never done it before, but I wanted to try it in a structured environment. **

**For the sake of being to the point, I will make the first "Hogwarts Rumble: Alternative" chapter as a psych profile on Arien Carstair, the OC. Funnily enough, I didn't actually make this character. My ex did, basing him off of certain parts of my personality, though I've taken steps to make him more interesting than I am. Lol. I've wanted to use him, because of how fleshed out I made him, and while this might not capture all of him, it will be a good jumping off point for later. **

**Consider these chapters as occuring in the Rumble Timeline. The first will take place during Goblet, once I give you an idea of who Arien Carstair is, and why he is the way he is.**

**Before anyone freaks out, this is mostly just a side project within the story. It'll have the same style of writing as the main line, just from a different person's perspective. **

Alternative Profile: Arien Carstair

Full Name: Arien Lucien Carstair.

Hair color: Black

Eye color: Dark Green

Blood Type: AB-

Blood Status: Halfblood masquerading as pureblood

Birthday: June 22(One year older than Harry and gang)

House and Year: Slytherin, 5th.

Dominant Hand: Ambidextrous

Pet: Snake(Castor)

Known Associates: Blaise Zabini(Best friend), Caroline Prewitt(Ex girlfriend).

Preferred spells/skills: Fulminis(Lightning), Glacis and Aquamenti combination, Sectumsempra(learned from lessons with his Head of House, Moderately skilled Legilimens. Advanced at Occlumency.

Attractiveness: 7/10(self report)

Favorite Professors: Flitwick and Snape.

Quidditch Position: Left Chaser

Likes: Quidditch, dueling, Defense, charms, Healing magic, some potions works, his blood brother Blaise, sleeping, reading, sour candy, and beef kebabs.

Dislikes: Death Eaters, cheaters, Hufflepuffs(at least the ones he has met), Malfoy, energetic people, tedious things, bossy people, sweets, and crowds.

Psych Profile:

Arien was born to purebloods Nihilus and Medusa Carstair via a muggle surrogate. Medusa found out she was unable to have children, and while she and Nihilus are purebloods, they are not supremacists. When they found out that muggles had a way to use someone else for the child, they quickly jumped at the opportunity.

Nihilus is a famous auror, and was partnered with Mad Eye Moody until Moody retired shortly after the initial fall of the Dark Lord. Known for screaming "Situational Awareness!" before banishing objects at his son to keep him on his toes. Relationship with parents typical, nothing of import beyond father taking son's defense teaching very serious. Arien was not aware he was a halfblood until his 6th birthday, when his parents revealed the circumstances of his birth. His parents made him swear to keep it a secret from the wizarding world at large, only telling those he trusted. He confided in his childhood friend Blaise, who haughtily replied Arien was inferior to him regardless of blood status(Blaise's way of saying he didn't care).

Is considered to be highly intelligent by his peers and teachers, but his work ethic places him around 14th in his year ranking.

Starting Hogwarts resulted in him placed in Slytherin, much to the amusement of his father, who was a Ravenclaw. "Infiltrate and subvert from within" was his reason given, plus a preference for their house colors. Tends to keep to himself since first year, though when Mr. Zabini began attending Hogwarts, they were often seen hanging around places where they won't be bothered by other people. Started advanced defense lessons with Professor Snape in his second year. Arien is highly amused by the man's attempts at intimidation, and often compares the man to a bat. Professor Flitwick noticed during Arien's first year that he rarely applied himself, despite having a highly analytical mind. When asked why he didn't try harder on schoolwork, Arien responded "nail that sticks up the most gets hammered down first". Entered a relationship with a Hufflepuff named Caroline Prewitt during his fourth year. Ended when he caught her making out with another member of Hufflepuff. Dislikes Puffs in general for this reason, and that betrayal has given him difficulties trusting people outside Blaise and his parents. Has a tendency for annoying Gryffindors for his own amusement. Has a tendencies to be vicious when dueling, particularly with people he views as trash(typically, children of death eaters as well as cheaters). He uses his moderate skill in Legilimency typically to communicate with his snake, as he lacks access to Parselmagic. Will fake hisses to his snake in order to freak out younger students. Despite being lazy and skilled with defense, desires to be a medical wizard with a focus on mind healing. Became interested in doing when his father mentioned that two former auror colleagues suffered from a currently untreatable mental condition. Enjoys annoying his best friend with muggle philosophy. Specifically Kant and Hume. Despite staying away from relationships since his last one, he does genuinely want to fall in love again, just has trust issues. Doesn't bother with flings or physical satisfaction unless he has emotional attachment. Finds them 'pointless exercises in animalistic urges'. Debated playing professional quidditch. Is somewhat undecided on that idea. Does NOT want to be an auror like his father, despite hating families like the Malfoys. Hates discrimination of any kind, be it against muggleborns, werewolves, vampires, veela, etc. Does find Veela mildy annoying because of their allure tugging at his Occlumency shields and their desire for shallow physical affection, though admits he hasn't actually met a veela and is more operating on stories from his father's youth. Detests being told what to do.

Attended the World Cup with his Father, ended up in box seats with French Head of Law Enforcement, Sebastien Delacour and his family.

And that is where our story begins...

**xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

**So here is a rough composite of Arien's profile. I may add more information to this as needed, but I wanted to give you guys the heads up for something I wanted to include here. Hope you find it enjoyable, and I'll upload the actual "Alternative" chapter later tonight. Thanks for reading.**

**Raizen out. **


	6. HR Alternative Perspective: Chapter 1

**Here it is. My first chapter of Alternative. Hope you like reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. I'm excited to finally utilize Arien as a character. :)**

Hogwarts Rumble Alternative, Chapter 1: Enter Arien.

It was a relatively overcast day, not out of the ordinary for Britain. Much in line with the rather dreary weather, the house of the pureblood Carstair family stood out greatly from the surrounding forest, the clearing for the yard further enhancing the dichotomy of the property. The building itself was structured like a typical wizarding household. Somewhat dated in external appearance, but still functional at the core. It was made of Victorian era bricks, signaling the family home was not a new building by any means. It had a multitude of windows on the front, with one large window on the left corner of the house, one smaller window on the right, and 3 average sized ones on the second floor. The roof was made of sturdy tile, which was faded from years of exposure to the sun. All in all, the building had character, much like the Carstair family at large. They were a line of moderately successful individuals, typically taking part in dueling circuits and law professions, be they auror or lawyers. Most recently, was Nihilus Carstair, the current head of the family. Retired auror and best friend/former partner to Alastor Moody, he possessed every bit of eccentricity you would expect from someone as paranoid as the former number one auror. While Moody shouted 'Constant Vigilance', Nihilus would should 'SITUATIONAL AWARENESS' before setting off semi-harmless traps on those under his command. All in all, he'd only lost 3 aurors out of 40 under his command, so he considered his methods effective. Much to his consternation, his methods did not seem to effect his slacker of a son, Arien. Speaking of the two, we find them lounging in the family sitting room, with Nihilus sitting in his favorite chair, hands steepled in front of his face, eyes locked on his son's lazing form on the couch. Arien was currently listening to the family radio, taking in a muggle broadcast of some sport called "football", quietly listening as two teams called Arsenal and Manchester United duked it out for some title or another. Nihilus did not consider himself a pureblood elitist, but he was not that interested in muggle culture. Personally, he found the idea of Quidditch much more cultured than this...football. Hell, he had taken steps to ensure Arien would eventually be able to attempt playing professionally, or at least he hoped, given the numerous pricey lessons with those fancy chaser coaches. Considering Arien had scored the most individual goals the last 3 years for the school, though he fell short of the Gryffindor "Flying Foxes" trio, he was still being observed by at least three Quidditch clubs. Not that Arien seemed to care, at least from Nihilus' observations. It was actually why he'd gotten box seat tickets to the World Cup Final with one of his foreign colleagues. Maybe seeing the noble sport played on such a level would motivate his perpetually lazy son into action.

Nihilus took a glance once more at his son, before finally deciding to get Arien's attention.

"Son." He started simply, using his somewhat intimidating presence to make himself known. "Have you packed up your things for the trip?" This prompted Arien to twitch, but didn't immediately say anything. Nihilus was about to speak again when Arien raised a hand in a "a moment" gesture. This prompted a sigh from the grizzled retired auror, though he acquiesced nonetheless. A few moments later, Arien jumped to his feat in triumph, his team apparently winning off a penalty. When he realized what he had done, Arien sheepishly rubbed the back of his head.

"Are you done?" Nihilus asked, amused at his son's enthusiasm, even if he didn't fully understand the big deal of muggle sportsball. "As I asked before, have you packed your things for the Final, son?"

Arien shook his head negatively. "No, pops. I haven't. We still have like 3 hours before the portkey activates, and I can just use my magic to pack my crap in a few minutes, so I've been procrastinating."

"You need discipline, son. Back in my day..." Nihilus took amusement in the visible signs of Arien tuning him out, which lead him to start saying rather silly things. "We had dark lords who wore pillow cases like house elves, dancing cats, an enthusiastic animal enthusiast and we LIKED IT!" He raised his voice at the end just to mess with his son, taking great enjoyment in watching Arien jump about four feet in the air. "Now pack your things. Since you seem so hellbent on being lazy, I think it's time we do another...training session, before we meet up with the Zabinis." Nihilus chuckled darkly. He always enjoyed turning Arien into a testing dummy for his old skills. One day, Arien would appreciate his madness. One day.

Xxxxxxxxxxxx

5 hours later...

Arien found himself wandering around the stadium ground aimlessly, taking in the giant stadium in relation to the myriad of tents and vendor stalls that had cropped up over the grounds. He was not really sure how to feel about the fact he was here. Sure, he liked quidditch since it was the closest he'd get to playing muggle football, but he honestly found watching teams he had no vested interest in to be a boring experience. The only saving grace for the whole experience was the skill of Ireland's chasers. Arien was sure he could find something useful from them. They were pros after all. He pulled out his wand to check the time, as he'd left his watch at home to avoid potential theft. The tempus told him he had about 30 minutes before the game started. He was about to move towards the stadium when a haughty voice caught his attention.

"Arien Carstair. One of the only uncouth individuals I've deemed worthy of my presence." A sily and sophisticated voice said to him, causing Arien to turn around. A lazy grin appeared on his face as he found himself staring at his best friend Blaise Zabini. The tall and aristocratic looking boy was a tan boy of Italian descent, his face always the picture of composure and cool. His black hair was combed perfectly, and not so much as a single hair was out of place. His friend was dressed in typically 'Blaise' style, meaning expensive everything. He had been slightly less pompous since he started dating Tracey Davis, however, so Arien was grateful for that. Blaise was basically his brother, but he could still be a bit much sometimes.

Arien shook his head, before clapping his best friend on the shoulder. "Blaise Zabini. I should have realized it was you, given the smell of Armani cologne and hair spray." Blaise merely quirked an eyebrow as if to say 'I fail to see that as an insult'. The tan boy glanced around at the 'rabble surrounding them, before sneering a bit.

"Let us move from this crowd, Arien. I don't want mediocrity to rub on me." Blaise spokely cooly, though his words lacked venom. He was a product of his upbringing, and while Arien had grounded his best friend significantly, Blaise was still prone to making thoughtless statements of like that from time to time. His mother had a history of choosing bad men, and his uncles had a habit of making those men...disappear. Though, she had recently begun dating Professor Snape, so many the bat would be less...broody now.

"Hello? Arien?" Blaise was snapping fingers in front of his eyes, trying to get his attention. "Why the hell did you space out like that?"

Arien just threw up a wry grin. "I was thinking how funny it is that Snape is dating your mom. You call him Dad yet?" This prompted a round of hexes from Blaise, which Arien just avoided.

It was sure to be an interesting evening, that was guaranteed.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxx

Arien and Blaise had arrived at their seats with only about 40 seconds to spare before the opening ceremonies started. They had gotten sidetracked by insulting Malfoy, which inevitably became a contest between Blaise and himself over who could be the most scathing towards the git. So they'd had to sprint up the winding staircases of the stadium up to their designated booth. When they arrived, they found they were the last to arrive, as they'd expected. Inside the booth was the motley crew of Arien's father, Ms. Zabini and Snape, and the French DMLE head Sebastian Delacour, along with his family. Much to his annoyance, he realized three of the four female occupants were veela, meaning he was going to have a bitch of a head ache by the end of the day from the strain on his Occlumency shields. He didn't look down on veela or anything, he just hated how they gave him headaches. Well that, and how arrogant they typically were. Given how the older daughter was looking down on him already, he could already tell she was going to be _delightlful _company. Shaking his head, he and Blaise made their way over to his father, who was currently leaning over the rails next to Sebastian and Severus, with each man holding a glass of firewhiskey.

"Heya, pops. What'd we miss?" This prompted a sigh from his father, who then turned his attention back to the other two adult males in the room.

"Sebastian, allow me to introduce my idiot son Arien and his friend Blaise Zabini. As you can see, punctuality is not one of their many virtues." He said while rubbing the salt and pepper colored stubble he'd cultivated over the past few days. The Frenchman nodded with a wry grin on his face, before extending a hand to Arien, and then one to Blaise.

"Ah, greetings, young ones." He spoke impeccable English, likely a side effect of working with English authorities over the last two decades to catch Death Eaters. He was a rather normal looking man for an auror, lacking the usual scars most veteran aurors had. This mean he was either a pen pusher...or very, _very_ good at his job. Arien concluded it was the latter, based on the respect his father showed the man. His father was not the most tactful towards individuals who only cared for political aspirations.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Delacour." Arien spoke cooly, knowing when to give respect when it was due. "My father has said nothing but kind things about you. Which is out of character, seeing as he usually insults everyone in sight." This prompted a sigh from his father, and what sounded like a snort from the Potions master.

"Ah, I was wondering if your wit was family trait. I see the apple does not fall far from the tree, Nihilus." Sebastien replied with a laugh, before he beckoned his wife and daughters over for introductions. "May I introduce my wife Appoline along with my daughters Fleur and Gabrielle."

Appoline and Fleur were beautiful, as veela often were, and could easily pass as sisters over mother and child. Appoline had a regal air to her, and long silver hair than ran to the middle of her back, though her eyes had that sort of kindness that only mothers could have.

"Eet iz a pleazure to make your acquaintance, young Arien." Appoline spoke warmly, though her English not quite as good as her husbands. Arien took her hand, and brushed his lips to her knuckles, as was pureblood custom in his family.

"Enchante, Madame Delacour." Arien replied evenly, promptly an impressed look and a raised eyebrow from Appoline.

"My, quite ze charmer, izn't he?" She spoke to her husband, before her voice took on a teasing quality. " 'E must be quite popular with ze ladies, at 'Ogwarts."

Arien merely brushed aside her comments. "Not at all, I was just trained in how to treat a lady." He then knelt down to look the youngest Delacour in the eyes. "And who might you be little one? And why...do you have such dirty ears?" He said before he pulled a galleon out from behind her ear, prompting a wide eye expression from the young girl, and an unimpressed gaze from the elder sibling. He was always amused by how easily magical children were impressed by sleight of hand tricks when they literally lived around the spectacular everyday.

"Maman! 'Ow did 'e do zat?!" Gabrielle's excited voice asked with childlike wonder. Arien smiled at the enthusiasm, before leaning in conspiratorily.

"Magic." He whispered "But you can't tell anyone okay? Especially not your surly looking sister." Gabrielle nodded emphatically, while Fleur just huffed in annoyance. Patting the younger girl on the head, before rising back to his feet, he subtly slipped his wand into his left hand, preparing to go for the kill.

"And for you, Ms. Delacour." A subtle flick of the wand and a hand flourish later, Arien had produced a flower in his right hand, startling the older girl. "A pretty flower for the lovely lady." She eyed him suspiciously, before tentatively accepting the flower. Arien nodded to her, before excusing himself, and headed over to talk to Blaise. Arien didn't notice, but Fleur kept her eyes on him, trying to figure out the odd boy.

Blaise just looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

"You are so bloody lame, though the part with the little one was rather endearing." Blaise spoke sarcastically, enjoying the ammunition with which to rib his friend with. "At any rate, you did an effective job at killing time before the actual game started. I was getting bored of these stupid opening ceremonies."

Arien was about to reply, when he felt a tug on his robes. He glanced down to see the wide, puppy like eyes of Gabrielle Delacour staring up at him.

"Can I zit over 'ere with you?" She asked in a small voice, clearly very shy about talking to new people. Arien merely patted the girl on the head and nodded, which caused her to beam up at him, and her to look expectantly at Blaise. There was a moment of where they were staring at each other, Blaise's disinterested grey meeting Gabby's innocent blue ones. After a few minutes, Blaise began to sweat slightly, before he coughed awkward, and patted the small girl on the head as well, and moved over enough to make room for the small girl to join them. Arien heard a light snort from Fleur, who was standing a few feet away from them, leaning on the railing, mask of indifference still in place. Her steely blue eyes were flitting about while she took in the game, her silver hair moving slightly in the wind from being up so high. Occasionally, her face would shift to annoyance whenever the Bulgarian Veela would bat their eyes at the referees and the crowd. At some point, she noticed Arien looking at her, before she shifted into a slightly defensive stance.

"Why are you ztaring at me?" Her voice was demanding, like she expected him to drool over her or something.

"I was just curious why you keep looking annoyed at the veela." Arien stated curiously, not trying to offend the older girl. Her brow furrowed a bit, as if trying to figure out how to put it into English.

"Zose veela are very typical. Zey bat zeir eyes at ze men, and enjoy being fawned over. Eet iz annoying." She stated neutrally, before brushing a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Hm, I can see how that would be annoying. I wouldn't like it either if someone reduced my people down to their stereotypes and exploited that."

She glanced at him a moment, clearly surprised by his response.

"You mean you are not effected by zeir allure?"

"No, it mostly just gives me a headache from the strain on my occlumency shields. They're not trying to reign in their allure at all, and it's really annoying. It's why I avoid veela." He stated blandly, both annoyed at the blatant attempt by the Bulgarians to tilt the odds in their favor and the fact his head was going to hurt like a bitch for the remainder of the evening. She took on a slightly offended look at that.

"Zo you are prejudiced against Veela?"

"No. I just find the attempts at seduction by the less...reserved tribes annoying, and the fact they give me headaches doesn't help either."

She took on a look of disbelief. "You mean to tell me zat you feel nothing for ze beautiful women?"

"Beauty without substance is meaningless." Whatever Fleur had expected him to say, it clearly hadn't been that. They didn't speak again for some time, roughly an hour, though he did entertain Gabby when she wanted his attention. The little girl apparently liked him, which was fine with Arien. She was sweet, and gave off sister vibes. Fleur observed this, and decided to test this boy beside her. She subtly focused her allure on him, using as much as she could while still being subtle. He stiffened immediately, before he began to rub his temples and glared at her angrily. He said nothing, however, and turned his focus back on the game. Fleur was in shock, because she'd yet to find anyone who wasn't affected by her allure. Even the boys at Beauxbatons trained in occlumency struggled to control themselves, much to her annoyance. This Arien Carstair intrigued her. Perhaps she could glean information about him from his father...

xxxxxxxxxxxx

The game had ended hours ago, and yet the atmosphere was so different from how it had been. Screams, smoke, and fire were everywhere, and Fleur was terrified. The men in silver masks were chasing her, and she wasn't sure she could fight them all off and protect Gabby at the same time. She had gotten separated from her parents in the confusion, and she honestly thought this might be it for her, but she would be damned if they touched a hair on Gabby's head. Taking a look around her, she realized she had lead them into the forest. That was good, to a degree, since that gave her a lot to burn with her fire magic. She kissed the top of Gabby's head, before placing the small girl on the ground. Gabby looked at her sister, eyes wide in terror.

"_Fleur? What are you doing?" _Gabby asked in French, too terrified to realize she'd switched back to her native tongue.

"_It's okay, little sister. I want you to close your eyes and hum Maman's lullaby to yourself. It will okay soon. I will protect you, but you mustn't open your eyes, okay?" _Gabby nodded, and did as she was told. Knowing her sister wouldn't have to witness her battle, she rose to her feet, and shifted into a defensive stance, wand in hand. She was exceptionally talented, but there were five of them against her. She gulped, and hoped they didn't intend what she thought they did. However, just before the first one moved to engage her, there were two aangry yells, and identical spells called out she didn't recognize.

"SECTUMSEMPRA!" The first masked man staggered a few feet, before he collapsed in a heap, his a deep cut running from his back. A second man fell over as well, and she wasn't sure if they were dead or not. Seeing she now had back up, Fleur leaped into action and began to engage the last three men on her own, her wand a blur of motion and her actions poetry in motion, a furious storm disguised as a gentle breeze. Fleur Delacour was a force to be reckoned with, as they would soon find out.

Xxxxxxxx

As soon as the last man fell, Fleur dropped to her knee, feeling the drain of the magic she had used. She had not ever had to fight that hard in her life, and despite her skill, she was glad the two figures who had come to her aid were there as a precaution. She glanced over at them, one of them walking to check on her. She recognized the one approaching her as the Zabini boy from earlier, meaning the other figure was probably Arien. She glanced over at the other figure, who was knelt down and handing something to Gabby. She realized when Gabby latched onto him that he had given her chocolate, and had hugged the girl to reassure her. Blaise examined her briefly enough to assess her condition before he move to secure the perimeter. Arien stood up, and led Gabby over to her.

"You fight well." It was a simple statement, but it was filled with a large amount of respect. Despite that she could not help but snort in derision.

"Did you expect me to merely be a pretty face and no substance?" She felt bad for throwing his own words back at him, especially since he had helped her, but they slipped out before she could stop them. She was so used to being seen as nothing but a pretty face that it was a defense mechanism.

"No, I- nevermind. Blaise, keep an eye on them. I'll keep watch. But first." He pointed his wand at her head, but before she could react, the spell left his lips. "Sanae!" The gentle blue light left his wand, and touched her head, feeling a like stinging sensation before it faded. She idly reached her hand up to where he'd pointed, find it was wet with blood. She hadn't even realized she had been injured. Before she could apologize or thank him, he was gone, replaced by his Italian friend.

"He specifically went looking for you two, I hope you realize that." Blaise's words were spoken in an offhanded manner, but he had clearly made sure they were audible to her. "He as soon as he saw the first Death Eater that muggleborn and halflings like you would be targeted the worst."

Fleur opened her mouth to speak but Blaise raised a hand to cut her off.

"I just wanted you to know that. Even though you pissed him off royally, he still decided we needed to make sure you and Gabby were safe. I hope you'll bear that in mind before you try something like that on my best friend again." Blaise spoke with a quiet intensity that was out of character for the usually haughty boy. He removed his coat, and placed it around Gabby's shoulders. "Though, not likely you'll see each other again after tonight." For some reason, that notion made Fleur uncomfortable, though she couldn't immediately identify why. She was going to ask Blaise why Arien had gone looking for them, but was unable to because Arien had comeback from his patrol.

"Blase, did you check them for other injuries?" He asked robotically, seeming to be on autopilot.

"I did, but you're the one with the mediwizard interest, not me." He paused a moment to grin at his friend. "You know I'm better at spells that _take_ lives, not save them." Arien rolled his eyes, but didn't respond. He paused, to take in the surrounding noises.

"It sounds like the fighting has died down. I'm going to send up some sparks so we can get some help." When no one objected, he raised his wand to the sky, and sent up red sparks to illuminate their position. "Okay, help should be on the way. Fleur, if you can still fight, take up watching the north. Between the three of us, we can form a protective triangle around Gabby until help gets here. It's probably not necessary, but it never hurts to be careful." Seeing them both nod, they moved into position.

Xxxxxxxxx

Fleur sat at the window of her room at Delacour Mansion. She idly let her thoughts drift back to the odd boy named Arien. He was hard to get a grasp on, and the fact he had ignored her entirely after they had reunited with their parents hurt her feelings. She had wanted to apologize for stunt with the allure, but she never got the chance to. In fact, Arien hadn't appeared well when they'd parted, though Blaise had appeared to know what was going on, seemingly in a hushed argument with the boy who had helped protect her sister. Fleur shook her head, she told herself that she could, and should write a letter to him, but whenever she asked her mother for advice, Appoline's eyes would merely sparkle, before saying "I think you'll get your chance to thank him sooner than you think."

Whatever that meant, it wasn't helpful, at least in context of alleviating her immediate sense of gratitude towards the younger boy. Fleur sighed, and hoped she'd be able to remove this distraction before full got into full swing.

Xxxxxxxxx

**To be continued...**

**So I was going to put the entire of year four from their perspective in here, but I realized I wanted to be a lot more detailed with this section, because it gives insight as to who Arien is as a character. As for what was bothering him at the end, it is something for you to figure out, at least until I write the next chapter which explains it LOL. I hope you at least find him mildy interesting, and don't worry, Haphne goodness will return in two chapters:)**

**Raizen out. **


	7. HR Alternative Perspective Chapter 2

**The second chapter of the secondary pairing, and this will span the entirety of Arien's fifth year, which is set during the goblet of fire. I'm writing this before I actually write the chapter, so I'm not sure if I'll have them together by the end of this chapter or not. I have some plans either way, so never fear. **

**I don't even know if anyone likes these sections, so for anyone who bothers to read about Arien and Fleur, thank you. Sincerely.**

Hogwarts Rumble Alternative! Chapter 2: Arien Carstair and the Lazy school year.

The train ride on the Hogwarts Express began in the typical fashion it did every year: Tearful farewells, excitement, and a form of organized anarchy that Arien still did not fully comprehend. Luckily, he had avoided the usual tearful farewells from his parents this year, as his father had injured himself in one of his crazy trapbuilding experiments, and his mother had decided to stay and laugh at him for the duration of his stay at St. Mungo's. This meant that Arien had arrived with the Zabinis, who were essentially a second family to him. Mrs. Zabini was a beautiful and aristocratic looking witch who was just turning thirty-four, though she didn't look a day older than twenty-five. She chalked it up to natural Zabini superiority whenever asked about it, and Arien was never sure if she was serious or not. Anastasia Zabini was a rather complicated woman, and up until recently, her only discernible flaw was how crummy her taste in men was. That had been rectified with her most recent boyfriend, one Severus Snape. She would often act rather...lovesick whenever the Slytherin head of house was involved, though you could tell Mr. Snape enjoyed the attention from the ever so slight blush on his face whenever she was around. Luckily for Arien and Blaise, Snape was not around to join them in their send off, thus preventing them from having to...discourage any snide remarks about Blaise's mother from the more stupid elements of Hogwarts.

Thus, Arien and Blaise boarded the train with less of a shitlist than usual, and more time for Blaise to plot how to exploit Arien's quidditch prowess for personal gain. They had ended up in a compartment with Blaise's girlfriend Tracey Davis, along with Malfoy. Arien wasn't to happy about that, and while he had made sure that the Malfoy heir was sufficiently terrified of him in previous years, Arien was in no mood to hear the ferret talk about how great he was for approximately two hours. Arien was able to subvert this thanks to two things: a subtle silencing spell and the fact Malfoy's goons were too stupid to stop nodding along.

Yes, Arien was sure this year would be as easy as the previous, with very little annoying or troublesome events to disturb his lazy life-style.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

October 30, 1994...

"God. Damnit." Arien said to himself for the 100th time since the semester had started. Currently, he was sitting in the Great Hall of Hogwarts at the table of Slytherin House. The four great tables were lined to the brim with food from Central Europe, France, and the good ol' UK filling plates as far as the eye can see. The various conversations of the students all blended together across the hall, not that Arien was particularly interesting in any of them. The walls were covered in both the house colors along with the colors of both Beauxbatons and Durmstrang, as both schools had arrived as part of a series of annoyances that seemed to be a part of an elaborate conspiracy to annoy Arien immensely.

Annoyance number one: Interschool Tournamenet being held at Hogwarts. At first, Arien had assumed this would not impact him at all. That was until he found out the interhouse quidditch was cancelled. Considering that was literally Arien's only source of exercise during the school year, that meant his father would demand he perform auror workouts in their stead.

Annoyance number two: No Quidditch meant no exposure. While this didn't really annoy Arien directly per se, it annoyed Blaise's master plan for Arien. Blaise had set up a rather convoluted plan for their success when they were around 6. This plan was as follows: turn Arien into a quidditch superstar, profit, then revolutionize the world of medical magic after retiring from quidditch. Blaise would then use his role in Arien's success in quidditch and medicine to launch a bid for Minister of Magic following his tenure as Arien's agent/partner. Due to the complex nature of the plan and Blaise's OCD, Blaise did not take deviations or interference with the plan well. This usually lead to longwinded rants about external variables, which Arien usually just tuned out, though he made sure to nod along as appropriate. Arien had just reached the end of Blaise's first rant of the year, which then leads to the next annoyance.

Annoyance number 3: The presence of Fleur Mother F***cking Delacour at Hogwarts. Arien had just gotten used to the idea of never seeing the troublesome and annoying silver haired girl again! Then suddenly she shows up at his school with a "Oh hey I'm staying here all year, kthxbai". Obviously, she didn't say that verbatim, but considering it was a year long tournament and she had shown up with the Beauxbatons delegation, it looked like Arien was stuck being in the same castle with her.

Annoyance number 4: Fleur's insistence on talking to him. She had, since arriving, attempted to start no less than 19 different conversations with him. This normally wouldn't be a problem, since he could just slink away to some other part of the castle, but he was currently trapped in the Great Hall for the welcome ceremony.

Not for the first time, Arien cursed the name of Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore for conspiring indirectly to put him in this situation. He glanced over at Fleur. The half-veela had chosen to sit away from her fellow Beauxbaton students, choosing instead to sit at Slytherin table next to Arien. She was currently having a conversation with Blaise and Tracey. Blaise had apparently maintained correspondence with her since the World Cup incident. Suspiciously, the three of them would periodically looked over at him, before resuming their hushed conversation. Judging from the look in Blaise's eyes, he was plotting something annoying. Arien shook his head, before moving to take a sip from his goblet, which he had requested to be filled with muggle soda. That was his small comfort in all this, that Dumbledore had finally taken to adding muggle drinks to the choices at meals. Much to his annoyance, his goblet was empty, and did not seem to interested in giving him more soda.

"Goddamnit." Arien cursed for the second time in about 5 minutes. Unlike his previous outburst, this had gotten the attention of Fleur who was now looking at him with what he assumed was her attempt at concern.

"What eez wrong, Arien?" She asked softly, her blue eyes meeting his green ones. He felt the vaguest twinges of her allure nipping at his mental shields. Unlike their last encounter before the chaos, Arien could tell it was not intentional. He apparently must have been silent a long time because she raised an eyebrow at him before speaking again. "Arien?"

"The one bright spot of my day has run out." He then gestured to his empty goblet. Fleur's brow furrowed in confusion, not understanding the problem.

"Zen why do you not refeell eet?" She kept looking between the goblet and his annoyed visage.

"Because Dumbledore apparently put a limit on it." He ground out in annoyance, realizing now that he had walked into a conversation with her without meaning to. And he had been doing so well before!

Fleur paused a moment, pursing her lips as the wheels in her head turned. "Zen...perhaps we could bypass eet by switching goblets, non?" It was a simple solution, and yet Arien hadn't thought of it. More so, he didn't like the implications of it. Apparently, 'indirect kisses' had something of a romantic connotation, and while he very much would like more Dr. Pepper, he definitely did not want to give Fleur any ideas. Unfortunately for him, she took the choice out of his hands, both literally and metaphorically, by taking his goblet and replacing it with hers. She gave him a small smile, before turning back to Blaise and Tracey and resuming their conversation. Biting back a growl of irritation, he called out for more soda. Taking a sip of the carbonated beverage, he glanced over at the girl who seemed dead set on befriending him. He did not like the fact she had a light blush on her cheeks when she took the first sip from the goblet, and he definitely didn't like how nice her damn smile was when she was happy.

"Troublesome." He muttered, before digging into his food. Kebabs had yet to let him down, and he took comfort in their savoriness.

Xxxxxxxxxx

"So why am I here again?" Arien spoke to Fleur, finally breaking the silence that had pervaded ever since she had cornered him in the dungeons and asked for his assistance with something. Fleur had been almost bouncing on her feet, clearly happy about something or another. In her hands was the golden egg thing she'd recovered during the first task of the Triwizard Tournament. While he had done a relatively effective job at avoiding her up to this point, Blaise had practically shoved him at the silver haired girl. Sighing in annoyance, he glanced at Fleur again. Her long silver hair was tied into a messy bun, and she was wearing the typical Beauxbaton uniform of a baby blue tight fitting blouse and skirt. The uniform was disturbingly attractive, a fact that annoyed Arien quiet a bit. Not for perverse reasons, but because Fleur looked better in it than he'd like to admit. Speaking of the girl, she had finally stopped, before she turned to face him, a smile on her face.

"I wish for you to help me with my clue." She held up the egg in a somewhat excited fashion, before she looked away a bit and mumbled in French "_It was the only way to get you to spend time with me."_

He wasn't about to tell her he actually spoke French, and he definitely wasn't going to comment on what she had said. Shaking his head, he glanced around the hallway they were at, seeing the famous painting of Barnabas the Barmy. "So why did you bring us to the secluded 7th floor then? Wouldn't the library have been a better choice?"

For some reason Fleur began to blush a bit, before she started to fidget with the hem of her skirt. "Blayze told me zere was a room up 'ere zat would 'elp me with ze clue." She paused, and began to walk back and forth in front of the painting, eyes closed in concentration. He was about to ask what she was doing, when suddenly a door appeared out of the wall next to the painting. Arien was surprised that she knew a secret about the castle before he did, which lead him to conclude that this was Blaise's handiwork. "Blayze called eet ze 'come and go room', I zink. Shall we go een?"

She walked to the door, before opening it. The room was rather surprising, and Arien was instantly suspicious. Inside was a giant pool, with towel racks, lounging chairs, and a wooden dummy sitting in a lifeguard stand(complete with sunglasses and trunks). He turned to demand an explanation from her, only to find her holding her hands up defensively.

"A-Arien! I did not know eet would do zis! All I did was zink of a way to solve ze egg clue!" She stammered out, clearly not expecting the turn of events either. Sighing in annoyance, Arien look around the room, before spotting what he was looking for.

"Whatever. We're here, so we might as well experiment." Fleur went red in the face at his statement, her mouth covered by her hand. "WITH THE EGG, FLEUR! Get your mind out of the gutter!" His response had apparently made her mad, because she walked angrily over to him, and started to jab him in the chest with a slender finger.

" 'Ow am I supposed to know what you meant! Eet was very ambiguous!" Her blue eyes were alight with defiance and righteous feminine fury, something Arien did NOT want to be on the receiving end of. "I do not know why you hate me, so if you 'ave something to say, zen say eet!"

Arien got in her face, anger getting the better of him. " I told you when we met that I detested veela trying to control me with their allure, and you did it _intentionally to me."_ At his words, she had the decency to look ashamed, looking away from him. "You acted like you were better than me when we first met, and never once had the decency to apologize for either of those things. I told you I don't like acts of lust without attachment, and you still hit me with your allure." His tone was cold and biting. "So you if you have an explanation, I'd love to hear it."

Fleur had gone quiet, her bangs covering her eyes as she refused to meet his eyes. He was about to demand a response when she shot her gaze up at him, her sky blue eyes welling with angry tears.

"I 'it you wizz my allure because I wanted to see eef you were truly immune, or eef you were just trying to impress me with empty words. Men always do so, and I assumed you were no different." Her old mask of haughty arrogance had returned, replacing the nervous and awkward girl who had been annoying him for the past weeks.

"Did I seem like I was trying to impress you? For God's sake I ignored you for most of the game!" He grit out through his teeth, anger still running through his system. Was this girl truly so arrogant to think he was fawning over her?

"You were kind to my seester. I assumed you were using her to try to get to me. Eet 'as 'appened before." Her tone was cold and accusatory, and every bit as hostile as his was. He idly wondered if she would attack him, and he was even less sure who would win.

"I was nice to your sister because she seems like a good kid! I don't do things with ulterior motives, Fleur! At least not something like that! Gabby was so nervous she wasn't enjoying something because a bunch of strangers had shown up! I figured if I showed her I wasn't someone to be scared of, she would open up a bit and enjoy the match!" Their noses were almost touching at this point, their anger almost palpable.

" 'Ow was I supposed to know zat?! You were a stranger!"

"Fleur, I had zero interest in you then and I have even less interest now. You're stubborn, stuck up, arrogant, and you think just because you're beautiful I should be automatically trying to win your favor." His words were vicious, but they didn't have the effect he expected. Her expression shifted from one of hurt, to anger, to shock, then to a mixture of anger and sadness. Before he could react, she grabbed his face and slammed her lips to his, causing his eyes to widen in shock. Without meaning to, he'd sent a legillimency probe into her mind when they'd locked eyes, and he reeled in shock at the feelings of desperation in the kiss, the isolation she felt on a daily basis, the warm curiosity she felt around him, and the hurt he'd inflicted when he'd insulted her. Closing her eyes and thus severing the connection, she pulled away, looking ever more like she was miserable.

"Do not prezume you know, Arien. Otherwise, you would be no different zan ze others at Beauxbatons." That statement brought Arien pause. Now that he thought about it, he had never seen her around other students from Beauxbatons. In fact, the females of the delegation seemed to glare at her, and the males seemed ogle her. It would explain the isolation he'd glimpsed in her mind.

"Fleur, I-" He tried to say, before she held up a hand to cut him off.

"I do not wish to 'ear it, Arien. Please, leave me be." Her tone was soft, but firm, and certainly left no room for questions. "_I cannot help but be drawn to you, because you saved the lives of my sister and I." _He managed to hide his shock at her words, before he remembered a tidbit about veelas he'd read last year in Professor Lupin's class. Veelas, while usually beings of physical affection, often formed bonds with people who went out of their way to help them, more so when they viewed the person as something of a savior. It then clicked in his head that this was why she insisted on approaching him, and why she acted so differently and insecure. She was in new territories, and was not used to having to be the instigator.

Arien sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He wouldn't voice his epiphany to her today. It would only serve to upset her more. Instead, he walked to the exit and put a hand on the door. Before he left however, he cast a glance back towards Fleur, and whispered,"I'm sorry, Fleur."

She didn't try to stop him, and he didn't expect her to either. As he made his way back towards the Slytherin common room, all he could think about was just how wrong he had been about who Fleur Delacour was.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

One week Later...

Arien found himself sitting alone in the Great Hall for lunch, something that become frequent over the past week. Well, alone in the sense that none of his friends would sit near him. Fleur hadn't spoken to him in a week, Arien noted with somewhat mixed feelings. He also realized that from the annoyed looks that Blaise and Tracey shot him during meals and when they passed him in the corridors, they knew what an asshole he had been as well. With a resigned sigh, he realized he needed to apologize to Fleur for his actions. And so, he began to formulate a plan to do so. To his knowledge, he knew Diggory had solved the clue for the task, given the fact he'd heard the guy brag about it to his girlfriend Chang when he'd passed them in the hallways earlier that day. Glancing around the Great Hall, he picked out Diggory at the Hufflepuff table. Given how disturbingly attractive the older boy was, he tended to stick out compared to the rest of the male population of Hogwarts. Subtly, he reached out with legilimency to try and glean anything of use about the clue from Diggory's mind. The only thing he could grasp was something about water. It was better than nothing. Realizing he had finished his meal, Arien stood up to leave. He paused, when he saw Fleur was eating at the Ravenclaw table, casually chatting with Roger Davies, who seemed to only be mildly dazed by Fleur's passive allure. With a resigned sigh, he pulled a piece of parchment from his things, and quickly wrote a note. Pulling out his wand, he morphed it into the form of a paper crane, before willing it to fly over to Fleur. With no other reason to remain in the Hall, he made his way out.

Xxxxxxxxx

Fleur was wondering why she had decided to sit at the Ravenclaw table that day. While avoiding Arien was a good excuse, she had to wonder if it was worth it when she had to suffer the ogling stare of Roger Davies. She did note that he was less effected than the other males at the table, though. As she nodded along to his incessant prattling and attempts at impressing her, a small enchanted paper crane landed in front of her. She picked it up, and saw 'open me' written on the beak in messy handwritting. Inside was a simple message written in the same sloppy handwriting.

_I got some information on the egg, and how to solve it. Water. If you want my help, I'll be at the room you showed me, tonight at 9. Otherwise, I hope this clue helped you, and I wish you the best with your endeavors. _

_-A_

She hadn't expected to hear from him after their fight. Blaise and Tracey had mentioned how proud and stubborn Arien could be, so she had sort of assumed that was the end of the friendship she had with him. She turned just in time to see him leaving the Great Hall. While she wanted to confront him then and there, she realized how slippery he could be when he didn't want to be found. Blaise had mentioned Arien's tendency to disappear for hours on end, and she'd observed it first hand on a few occasions. And so, Fleur Delacour resigned herself to finding out what the jerk wanted her for that evening.

Xxxxxxxxxx

Later that night...

Arien stood outside the Room of Requirement, wondering if Fleur would actually show up. She seemed to be just as stubborn as he was, and while he was sure the hint had gotten him some points back with her, he still wasn't sure she would show. Even if she did, there was a strong chance she would hex him to pieces. He checked his watch, noting it was now 9:15 at night. He cursed under his breath, realizing he had been foolish to expect her to show up. He propped himself up from the wall he'd been leaning against, and was about to leave, when he saw Fleur walking up the stairs. Her expression was of the same detached apathy she'd displayed when he'd first saw her. She was wearing what she usually did, though she had on a pair of glasses, which he noted made her more attractive, somehow. She took her time walking over to him, as if savoring his discomfort.

She glanced him up and down, before speaking. "You said you had information about my clue?"

Arien winced at the formal and cold way she spoke to him, as if this was purely about business. Running a hand through his black hair, he nodded.

"I do. Water is the key to solving it, I think." Upon hearing his answer, she scoffed at him.

"You zink? You are not even completely zure?" Disbelief dripped from her words, causing him to wince.

"All I could pull from Diggory's mind was that water helped him solve the egg. I was too far away to get anything more detailed from him." He didn't know why he told her how he had gotten the information, but it seemed to impress her a little bit.

"You used ze mind art to 'elp me? You know zat is illegal." At her response, Arien merely shrugged.

"I've never used it on people who would be able to realize what I was doing, and I've only used it when I felt it was helpful without any chance of causing harm." He once again found himself explaining his actions to her, without really understanding why. He looked up, and met her eyes, noting her lips were pursed and brow furrowed.

"Zank you, Arien. I will go test your information in ze room now." The unspoken dismissal wasn't lost on him, and he watched as she made her way to the door of the Room of Requirement. Before she entered, he spoke, afraid if he didn't he'd never get the chance to again.

"I'm sorry, Fleur. I was wrong about you." It was a simple admission, but it held weight. She paused, hand on the handle, before she slowly turned to face him, her expression a mixture of surprise, anxiety, and...hope?

"Oh? About what?" She wasn't going to make this easy for him, was she?

He sighed, before he made his way over to her and looked her in the eye.

"I was wrong about you being some bitchy girl who thinks she's better than everyone else. I was wrong about you trying to use your allure on me maliciously. You were worried I had ulterior motives, and that I would be like the myriad of other people that I assume abused any trust you gave them. I was wrong about you being stuck up and pompous. I was wrong about so many things, and I just want to apologize to you." He took a breath before continuing " That's all I came here to say. If you want me to leave now, I will, and I won't bother you again." He heard her breath hitch a moment at his statement, which he interpreted as a sign of discomfort. He sighed and backed away from her, breaking their eye contact. He was about to turn and leave, when he was pulled into a hug. Fleur pressed herself close to him, burying her face in his shoulder. He wasn't sure if she was hugging him so tightly because of the fledgling magical bond between them, but it was...nice. She pulled away after a few moment, before she went red in face at her boldness. She adjusted her glasses, before she coughed into her hand.

"Non...you don't 'ave to go. I would like your 'elp with ze clue." She smiled gently at him, and motioned for him to follow. In that moment, for the first time since he had met her, Arien was struck by how beautiful Fleur was.

This fact became problematic for him, when he realized they would have to change into swimwear, and the bikini she chose was every bit as revealing as he had worried it would be. As such, the following two hours of Arien's life were humorously awkward, given the proximity between the two of them, and the fact that he was now having to come to terms with the fact that Fleur Delacour was not nearly as troublesome as he'd initially thought.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

December 1994, Night of the Yule Ball...

It was a beautiful night, though Arien's reasons for stating such were probably much different from the other members of the joint student body. The stars in the sky were perfectly visible, and he was wrapped up in enough blankets to resemble a caterpillar, and a case of butterbeer. If the fair reader was wondering why Arien was essentially pouting AND brooding below freezing temperatures, then the reason was actually quite simple. Because Roger Davies was at the Ball with Fleur...and Arien wasn't. Granted, she freely admitted she only accepted Davies' invitation to spite him, she was too kind of a girl to retract acceptance after she gave her word. She had offered him a sad smile, though he'd gotten the last laugh when she'd kissed him softly right in front of the snobby Ravenclaw's face two days prior. He would definitely use that for a Patronus memory at some point. But he had little interest in social gatherings as a whole. If he couldn't even go with the only person that had managed to break down his walls since...Caroline...then why would he bother?

He'd gotten some funny looks from the couples who'd been trying to find some secluded spot to snog at. Considering the only paret of him that was visible from the cocoon was his angry looking eyes, most people who spotted him were weirded out. He flicked his wand under the blankets levitating a butterbeer up to his mouth, sipping it on it and thinking about whether Fleur was having a good time, and whether he'd have to maim Davies afterwards for uncouth behavior toward his friend.

That word gave him pause. He wasn't quite sure when she had become his 'friend', and he was even less sure that the word accurately described their relationship. If he had to put it into words, he'd say they were somewhere beyond simple friendship but less than a romantic relationship...Though if Arien was being honest with himself...then he wouldn't be opposed to the idea of dating Fleur. She'd lately seemed almost...aware of the fact his glances at her had begun to linger. Was that something a Veela bond did? He wasn't sure, especially since the only experiences with Veela prior to meeting Fleur were overwhelming annoying. But Fleur was different, perplexingly so. She was somehow gentle and almost shy, while simultaneously driven and scary as hell. Letting out a muffled sigh of annoyance, he turned his thoughts to other things, like how Blaise was doing, and whether he'd have to hurt Malfoy for harassing that Greengrass girl. Apparently she was rather smitten with Potter, and Draco didn't like that very much. Oh well, he'd tormented Draco in the past for much _much _less, so he with an evil chuckle, Arien cast his gaze back towards the stars, content to watch the night sky while he enjoyed the solitude.

Xxxxxx

A few hours later...

Apparently, Arien had dozed off at some point, because he was now being shaken gently by someone. He shifted a bit in his cocoon so he could look at them, because he was had no idea who it was. But the perfume smelled like Fleur's, and to his knowledge, no one else imported perfume that smelled like cherry blossoms.

"Fleur?" He slurred sleepily and still slightly buzzed from the butterbeer. He tried to move a bit, but he was still wrapped up pretty tightly. He was however, able to get a glimpse at her face, which was currently somewhere between amused and upset. " 'sa matter?" He was still groggy, but he was now worried about what was wrong.

"Yes, Arien, it's me." She spoke softly, patting him on the head. "I see you had an interesting evening." She tried to sound joking, but there was a note of anger in voice.

"Don' worry about it right now. Why're you upset?" She stiffened, or at least that's what it looked light in the dim light. He was still struggling to get out of the damn cocoon, his wriggling causing him to lean against her, something that caused him to blush.

"I don't want to trouble you with-" He cut her off, but using a cutting hex to slice his way out of the blankets(making a mental note not to use magic again to ensure maximum warmth). After repairing the blankets with a quick Reparo, he locked eyes with her and placed his hands on her shoulder, causing her to let out a 'meep'.

"Fleur, you are never a trouble to me. Now tell me what is wrong." He spoke to her rather softly, but he made it clear he wasn't asking. He idly took a moment to take in her appearance. She looked like an angel, if he was being honest. Her silver hair was drawn in a pony tail to the side, and she was wearing a modest yet sleek dress that accentuated her figure quite snugly. She had some sapphine earrings in, and she was wearing a sapphire pendant that secured to a small choker around her neck. All in all, Arien wasn't really sure how he was maintaining higher cognitive faculties while speaking to her. He chalked it up to his concern for her overpowering her ability to turn him into a driveling idiot.

"It was Daveez. 'E...kept trying to touch me in inappropriate ways." Fleur's eyes welled up with tears, from frustration and sadness. "I told 'im to stop repeatedly. But 'e would not. So I set 'is pants on fire wizz my Veela magic. He called me a psycho, and cursed at me. Saying I was leading 'im on wizz my magic."

As much as Roger Davies was now effectively number one on Arien's shitlist, Fleur needed him more than Roger needed a kick in the teeth...for now. Though, he chuckled a bit when she said she set his pants on fire.

"You zink zis is funny?!" She pulled away from him immediately, hurt written on her face. "You ztill zink I am just some 'arlot?!" He stopped chuckling immediately, closing the distance and pulled her into a hug. She struggled a bit, but didn't try to hard to get away.

"No, Fleur. I was laughing because you set a guy's pants on fire for being a pervert. I would have paid money to see that." She stopped struggling completely, gingering wrapping her arms around him, and putting her head on his shoulder. "I'm sorry, I don't think anything he did was funny at all. In fact,I plan to...educate him on why that was a mistake very, very soon. Blaise and I are rather creative when we wish to be." She let out a small laugh, but her eyes were still brimmed with tears.

"Do you zink I lead him on? Or zat I am some kind of eazy girl?" She asked in a small voice, insecurity from years of namecalling and isolation becoming evidence. Sometimes Arien forgot she was essentially a badass and grown woman, given how vulnerable she was sometimes. He shook his head, cupping her chin in his hand, and placing a small kiss on her forehead. She blushed a rather pretty shade of pink, but didn't complain.

"No, you silly woman. I don't think anything of the sort. I think people just have a nasty tendency of forming opinions about you without knowing you at all, and then sharing those opinions with other idiotic people." He let go of her, before he reached down to pick up the blankets. He then placed them on her shoulders, to make sure she was warm. "I was worried that you wouldn't have a good evening, so I had sort of planned to..." Arien sort of trailed off at then, suddenly embarrassed.

"Zorry? I did not catch zat?" Fleur was curious why he seemed so bashful.

'Ah, Crapbaskets.' He thought to himself before he looked her in the eye "I sort of maybe...plannedtowhiskyouawayaftercurfewforsomedancin? Under the stars?" She still looked a bit confused, so he repeated himself slowly. "I planned to sneak you out after curfew so we could go dancing by the lake, underneath the stars."

Realization dawned on Fleur's face, and she began to fidget nervously.

"Does...zis mean zat is no longer ze plan?" She sounded really disappointed, which prompted Arien to wave his hands in front of himself rather empathically

"Of course we can still do it! I just figured you were tired and irritated so you would-OW!" She had flicked him on the tip of his nose. "What was that for?!" He demanded, irritated by the stinging on his nose.

"Arien, zometimes you talk almost too much. Now lead ze way." She latch onto his arm, before making a gesture to proceed. Still rubbing his nose, he nonetheless complied.

The walk from the castle to the lake wasn't an overly long one, but they did not speak too much to each other on the way there. The silence was a little awkward, because of the romantic connotation this excursion now held, but was not oppressive silence by any means. At some point, Fleur had laid her head on his shoulder again while they were walking. He hadn't really taken notice of their height difference until now. The top of her head only came up to about his chin. Meaning she was about 5'4'' or so, while he was about 6'0''. He flicked his eyes to her, but didn't comment on her action. Finally, after walking down the gravel path that lead from the school, they finally found themselves on the shore of the Black Lake. They could idly make out the shape of the lake's giant squid floating lazily across the surface. Shaking her head at the oddity of a giant squid in a freshwater lake, Fleur walked over to the lone tree by the shore, and carefully sat down, before she removed her heels. She briefly rubbed her feet a bit, before looking at Arien with a hopeful innocent expression, though she didn't say anything. Arien just stared at her a moment, before sighing and sat down in front of her, and started to rub Fleur's feet. She beamed at him, before sighing in contentment as she nestled herself into the blankets.

She paused a moment to look around, before she raised a brow at him.

"Well, Monsieur Carstair...Zis is a rather romantic setting, but it iz a bit bland, no?" She was stated innocently, trying to prompt him into unveiling his plan.

"Well, I was going to set everything up, but then you wanted a foot rub." Arien stated in a deadpan manner, causing Fleur to blush slightly in embarrassment.

"But my feet were a leetle sore..." She stated, pushing her index fingers together sheepishly.

"It's not a problem, Fleur. Just give me a minute okay?" Upon seeing her nod, he stood up, and pulled his wand from his sleeve. He threw up a few privacy measures, including a silencing spell and perimeter wards in case anyone got close to them. He then reach into his pocket, pulling out a shrunken enchanted radio his father had gifted him. This one differed from the average magic radio in that it picked up muggle stations as well as magical. Without turning it on, he moved the frequency knob over to the station he had in mind, which was an older music channel that he thought was good for dancing. Canceling the shrink charm, he set it on the ground beside the tree, then pulled out a picnic basket he had used a shrinking charm on as well. Upon returning it to normal size, he pulled out a bottle of wine Blaise had recommended along with some glasses.

"You have wine, Arien?" Fleur asked excited, as she always enjoyed a nice glass of wine with her meals, though it wasn't as acceptable here in England as it was in France, much to her annoyance.

"Yes, a...little birdy informed me that nothing pairs better with French girls than wine." He stated noncommittally, though it was very obvious who he'd gotten it from.

"Would zis leetle birdy happen to be named Blaise" She asked teasingly, though her expression was definitetly one of delight.

"As a matter of fact, it is. And a rather annoying birdy at that." He replied with an annoyed tone, prompting her to laugh. Once more, he was now acutely aware of how nice her laugh sounded. "I prelude this experience with I do not know shit about wine, nor do I have any idea of what he put in this bottle. He was rather adamant about there being no labels on it, to ensure plausible deniability." Fleur raised a brow at the explanation, but didn't comment, instead choosing to hold her glass out expectantly. Arien sighed, before he filled her glass. Rather than filled one for himself, he called for his family's house elf, who brought him another case of butterbeer. Fleur looked mildly offended that someone would choose butterbeer over wine. Shaking her head, she took a sip. Her eyes brightening a bit upon tasting it.

"Eet iz good, Arien." She replied happily.

"I'll make sure our little birdy knows you liked it." Arien said with a laugh. Idly, he looked at her again. She had one of the fluffy blankets draped over her shoulders like a shawl, and her cheeks were slightly flushed, probably because he'd started rubbing her feet again. Her dress was slightly crumbled, and her mascara was little runny from her tears earlier. All in all, she was breathtaking in that moment.

"Arien?" Her voice shook him from her trance. "Iz zomething on my face? You were ztaring at me." Maybe it was the fact he'd had a shitload of butterbeer or maybe he was just feeling bold that evening, but whatever caused it, he did not regret his next words for even a second.

"You're beautiful, Fleur." Three simply words. Well, a contraction followed by two words. She didn't say anything immediately, almost as if she didn't hear him. However, about 7.3 seconds later, her face went nuclear read, and she covered her face with the blanket.

"D-Don't say such zings!" Her voice got quieter a moment. "Especially if you do not mean zem. It is not fair to me." He stopped his footrub, and looked at her a moment, before he grabbed the shawl and pulled her towards him, causing them to tumble over. She put her hands on his chest, and her wrapped his arms around her. He looked down at her head, which was staring at his chest to avoid eye contact.

"I did mean them, Fleur, because you are. I just...figured you wouldn't want to hear them because people probably tell you so much they lack meaning by now." He murmured softly, before brushing a stray lock of hair behind her ear.

"Zey...Zey do hold mean when you say zem, Arien." She mumbled softly "Arien, I have something to tell you..."

"Is it that I'm pregnant and you're the father?" He stated jokingly, causing her to hit his chest lightly with her fist.

"N-No you fool! Zis is serious!" She stated in annoyance. "When you saved me...I zink you formed a bond with me. Specifically, a veela bond..." She trailed off, insecurity.

"I know, Fleur."

"You...do?" She sounded surprised, as if not expecting that from him.

"Yes. My defense teacher last year was rather adamant about creatures that have influencing abilities, though he was very clear that doesn't make them malicious."

"So...you know zis means I am essentially property to you, a sex toy." Her words were icy, and dangerous.

"No, Fleur. While that may be the common wizard interpretation of what a Veela, but it's not true." Her expression shift from impending anger to one of pleasant surprise. "A veela bond is a magical union of two people. It lets you feel what I'm feeling, and in some cases, I feel what you feel. Sure, it means any...activities we do will feel like 50 times better now." At seeing her blush, he grinned. "But that's more a side effect, not the defining characteristic. It doesn't mean I just see you as some object for my sexual desires." He gently placed a hand on her face, rubbing her cheek with his thumb. He felt her lean into his hand, and let out a content hum before she hugged him tighter.

"You pass."

"I what now?" His confusion was tangible.

Instead of answering verbally, she instead smashed her lips against his, and ran her fingers through his short black hair. After a minute, she pulled away, taking amusement in his dazed expression.

"Bloody hell, Fleur. What was that for?"

"For being sweet. And knowing about my people." She laid her head back on his chest and closed her eyes.

"As fun as I think it would be to have us take a nap, I actually had one more thing planned." At his statement, she lifted her head to meet his gaze, curiosity visible in her pools of silver that locked with his sea of green.

"What iz it, Arien?" She was a little nervous for some reason.

"I wanted us to dance."

"You want...to danze? Wizz me?"

"I do. I knew I wasn't going to be able to at the ball...so I wanted to have a private dance at my favorite spot at the school, just you and me." His statement had the confusing reaction of having her swoon a bit, but she nonetheless agreed. He helped them both to their feet, and led her over to the shore, the full moon illuminating the beach rather nicely. He went over to the radio, and turned it on, causing pleasant singing to fill the air.

"_Put your head on my shoulder  
Hold me in your arms, baby  
Squeeze me oh-so-tight  
Show me that you love me too..."_

They slowly danced in rhythm with the music, time seeming to stand still as they gently swayed to the man's wonderful singing. The music fit the mood and setting perfectly, and spoke more for Arien in that moment than he felt he could with his own words. Fleur gently set her head on his shoulder, enjoying the moment of intimacy that she hadn't expected from this evening.

"_Put your lips next to mine, dear  
Won't you kiss me once, baby?  
Just a kiss goodnight, maybe  
You and I will fall in love (you and I will fall in love)..."_

Fleur lifted her head from her perch, and they locked eyes, before their lips slowly drifted towards each other, meeting in the middle. It was _electric, _if Arien was being honest. It wasn't lustful, and it wasn't heated, but it nonetheless sent chills down his spine.

The song continued, but Arien found he couldn't make out the words anymore because all he could focus on was Fleur Isabelle Delacour.

Xxxxxxxxxx

They danced for a few more songs, before they took a break. Arien was about to speak out, but he was cut off by someone else.

"Ah, young love. It reminds me of my own romances of my past." The jolly voice of Albus Dumbledore intruded on the moment, causing them to look over at where he'd spoke from. The eccentric old man was wearing frilly robes, and his half moon spectacles sat on the bridge of his nose, and were his eyes...twinkling?! "As beautiful as this moment is, Mr. Carstair, I would point out to you that it is after midnight. It is quite fortunate that I have found Ms. Delacour, as I was certain that Madame Maxine was going to send out the hounds had I not located you myself in a timely fashion."

"Headmaster, I am so sorry-" Arien began, but was cut off by a knowing chuckle from the old man.

"My boy, the day such a beautiful moment becomes something to be ashamed of is the day I no longer preside over this school. Now, if you'll excuse me. I believe young Ms. Lovegood said there were some gnargles around here, and as I am not familiar with the creatures, I am delighted to finally encounter some. Off you go." He shooed them back towards to the castle, before he strolled in a jolly manner towards the other side of the lake.

As they started the walk back, Fleur had to voice one of the questions on her mind.

"Arien?"

"Yes, Fleur?"

"Does zis mean...we are togezzer?" At her question, Arien pulled her into his arms, carrying her bridal style, prompting the girl to flush red.

"If that's what you want. I know I'm quite fond of you, but you're the one who's a ten here, and much out of my league, so you make the call." She didn't say anything but nodded. "Then together we are."

They walked a few more minutes before Fleur spoke again.

"Arien?"

"Yes, mon cheri?" She swooned a bit before she continued, taking a lot of joy from the use of French.

"What is this...Nargle zat Dumblydore mentioned?"

"I have no idea, Fleur. But I hope he finds them."

xxxxxxxxxx

The year passed much faster than Arien would have liked. He had ended up being Fleur's hostage in the second task. The judges were originally going to use Gabby, until Dumbledore pointed out how harmful that might be on the young veela, since they were creatures of fire. When Arien found out they'd even considered using a child, he'd almost turned Ludo Bagman into a stain on the wall, though Dumbledore made a compelling case that as amusing as it would be, he doubted Ms. Delacour would want to visit him in prison.

Next, came Valentines Day, which went reasonably successful. He had taken Fleur on another picnic at the tree by the Black Lake shore, and she told him that she loved him, something that he reciprocated.

He had also ended up playing a pick up game of Quidditch with various people from the schools. He didn't recognize a lot of people, but he had known the Weasley twins, Potter, and Davies, since they were from Hogwarts. His team had won, between his efforts as Chaser and Viktor Krum, who'd been the seeker for his team. Somehow, he'd actually managed to impress the Bulgarain, who told him to write him about trying out for the Vratsa Vultures, the quidditch club Viktor played for. Apparently, their third chaser had just retired, and they had yet to find a replacement yet. If Blaise had been there, he would have had money symbols for eyes. While that was certainly awesome, watching Davies get smashed in the face with a Bludger was _heavenly_, and judging from the conspiratory thumbs up the twins had given him, Arien was fairly confident it hadn't been an accident.

The third task had been upsetting for Fleur, because she'd made it to the cup first, only for Diggory to get her with a stunner from behind. Suffice to say, she did not like Diggory at all after that. Arien had, however, made sure to cheer up, but using the Room of Requirement to make a spa for her. That is how she spent the following day, being lavished in attention and pampering. Suffice to say, Fleur was _very _appreciative.

Which brings the audience to the present moment, the moment of parting between Fleur and Arien. He standing just outside the Great Hall, waiting for Fleur to show up. They'd managed to set aside some time before Beauxbatons was leaving, so he was glad he could see her before she had to leave. She didn't come from the direction he was expecting, though. Rather than from the main castle entrance, he saw her come from the staircase that lead to the Headmaster's office. Arien filed that away for later examination, not really caring at the moment. Who needs to analyze things when you have a beautiful French witch walking towards you rather seductively in order to snog your brains out?

Bloody no one, that's who.

Well, unless you don't swing that way. But that's derailing this fluffy piece of literature.

Arien took in Fleur's appearance, and he for the millionth time that year, was wondering why the hell this girl loved him. She was wearing her school uniform, and she had her glasses on her face. She had not worn the school cap however. When she stopped in front of him, she planted a kiss on his lips, before hugging him.

"I can't believe I'm not going to see you for a while." Arien grumbled, burying his face into her silver tresses. And I can't believe I'll have to go a school year without seeing you."

Fleur's expression went from understanding to _extremely_ mischievous. "I know, however will you live without me being there to keep you in line?" She spoke teasingly, before she got serious. "I spoke wizz my fazher. He was delighted to approve ze contract. He stipulated ze wedding would be at ze end of June."

Despite how liberal his father was, he was very old fashioned about wizarding dating. Meaning after courtship, came marriage contract. While normally, Arien would state this was moving too fast, the veela bond he shared with Fleur had fully developed and he knew there was no way he could ever be with someone who wasn't her. He had brought it up with his father, who had agreed instantly. After all, who doesn't some dream of uniting your family with one of your best friends? According to his mother, his father had let out a rather unmanly shriek of delight at his letter, though his father denied it to his day.

"Are you sure this? About...us?" He started insecurely. "I'm sure you could find someone better for you...OW!" She had flicked him in the nose, which was her way of preparing to call him an idiot.

"Arien, do not be ztupid. I know you have zeze insecurities but I have bonded with YOU, and no one else. Meaning I do not want anyone but you." She started off in irritation before her tone became more soft and caring. "I know zis Caroline cheated on you, and zat has hurt you. I am not 'er, and I will nezer do zat to you. I love you, Arien. Now stop being stupid., please."

Arien was touched by her words...at least until she called him stupid, which prompted him to sweat a bit.

"_Yes, honey. I will." _He replied in French without thinking. Immediately, Fleur stiffened.

"Arien..." Her tone became very dangerous and terrifying.

"Uh...yes, Fleur?" He began to sweat nervously. The cat was out of the bag now.

" 'Ave you been able to speak French ZE ENTIRE YEAR?!" She lost her cool at the end of the sentence.

"Uh...techincally no...because I've spoke it since I was six?" Her expression had gone blank, except for the rather pronounced twitch of her eye.

"Arien...you 'ave 4 seconds to run before I set you on fire." To highlight her seriousness, she formed a fireball in her left hand, the flames dancing across her fingertips.

"Come on! You say such adorable things when you think I don't understand!"

"Trois."

"Can you blame me? It's so cute!"

"Deux."

"Are you really that mad?"

"Une." Throwing self-presevation to the wind, he pulled her into a kiss, surprising her. After a moment, he pulled away and looked at her expectantly.

"Zero."

Arien's screams of pain echoed through the castle for a least an hour.

Xxxxxxxxxxxx

To be continued...

**Whew, that was a long one. The next chapter we are back to Haphne! YAAAAAAAY**

**But I gotta admit I like writing this chapter so much that I actually didn't realize itwas about 27 pages until I finished it. I have thus demonstated the positive psychology phenomenon of "flow". * queue the 'more you know logo'* **

**I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it. I could have done more, but I don't even know if anyone even likes these sections of Hogwarts Rumble, and while I love them as much as the Haphne sections, I stopped myself because otherswise I'd just be wasting my time, ya know?**

**Well, whatever, I hope you'll stick with the story. Until next time.**

**Raizen out.**


	8. Chapter 5

**Here's another Haphne chapter. I hope many of you are enjoying both perspectives in this story. I enjoy writing them, it just gets frustrating sometimes. **

**To the one guest reviewer who complained about a secondary story being told, I guess you should just stay away from fics with multiple main characters and pairings. I don't know what else to say besides that, other than wonder how you read the actual HP books, since they switch perspectives multiple times. :/**

**For everyone who stuck around, and to the reviewer who said such kind things about the work I put into Arien, thank you. **

**For those wondering, I have a tendency to ignore fanon usually. Hence why I embraced my idea of using Eri as a template for Daphne. That is why I made Daphne half-Japanese. It's not a huge plot point, just something I did on a whim.**

**ALSO: I was stupid and didn't realize I had used Tracey with Neville originally, so I swapped her out for Lisa Turpin in Chapter 4. Wanted to include another underutilized character, but the dynamic of Blaise and Tracey is too damn amusing to give up, which I think you'll see in the next Arien chapter :) **

Chapter 5: Family histories

It's funny how uneventful Harry's years were without Tom trying to murder him. Hell, he half assed the rest of the Triwizard and put little to no effort in the third task. If they hadn't used Daphne as his hostage in the second task, he would have just lazed on the surface of the Black Lake like an otter. Daphne had originally been furious that her boyfriend was going to slack around instead of win...right up until he pointed out not trying in the tournament meant more time to spend with her. He had never seen anyone chance stances on an issue. Well, anyone who wasn't a politician, anyway. The other hostage choices had been interesting. Besides Daphne, Hermione had been chosen, along with Cho Chang and a Slytherin guy named Arien, who he'd only seen in quidditch matches. He was a really good chaser, but not enough to compete against Alicia, Angelina, and Katie combined. He seemed nice enough, but they didn't really talk much after that.

There had been a pick up game of quidditch between members of the school. Unfortunately for Harry, he'd been playing against Viktor Krum. That Arien guy had been on the other team as well, but Harry had been sure he wasn't as much of a concern. Yeah, it turns out, Arien was being held back by Slytherin's other chasers. The guy got like 30 goals on his own, before Krum caught the snitch. He'd been annoyed, until both boys had told him he was the best seeker in Hogwarts, and that he would someday give Viktor a run for his money. That, and Daphne had snogged his brains out when he'd been moping. So that was cool.

Diggory had won the Triwizard tournament, snatching it from Fleur at the end by stunning her. Viktor had apparently gotten lost in the maze. When he'd asked Hermione what had happened, she had simply explained that Viktor was very directionally challenge. He could get lost walking ten feet away. She had apparently been researching it since they'd started dating.

Harry's summer was pleasantly uneventful, and filled with more of the positive homelife Harry had missed out on in prior years. His relationship with Daphne had continued to be a strong source of teasing from his adopted _father _and uncle. They were so mature about it they proceeded to make smooching noises at him...at least until he pointed the irony of two painfully single heterosexual males in their 30s making fun of him for having a girlfriend. That had kept them quiet for a few days. When Harry had ended up back with his adoptive dad and Uncle Remus, they'd had another VHS tape binge. Apparently, the older men had stocked up on newer series and models to work on over the summer with Harry. Which is basically all they had done, besides finding new ways to use magic to animate model kits, which was awesome. Which lead them back to King's Cross Station for another school year...

xxxxxxxxxx

As Harry settled into the compartment, he idly wondered what the year had in store for him. Sirius apparently warned him the Defense teacher was a Ministry stooge, as Minster Fudge apparently thought that Dumbledore's announcement of the final defeat of the Dark Lord was a prelude to a run for Fudge's job. As a result, Fudge had decided to put his undersecretary as the Defense professor. Meaning he may want to consider alternative instruction so he and his friend's didn't fail their OWLs. The man had barely held onto his office after the incident with Sirius' lack of trial, and was treading on thin ice with both the public and the Wizengamot.

The sudden opening of the compartment door shook Harry from his thoughts, but he only had a few second warning before he was glomped by a blonde blur.

"Beloved! We are reunited at last!" came Daphne's voice, as he'd recognize that archaic speech pattern anywhere. She had already changed into her school robes, which seemed a bit more snug on her feminine form now. Her hair was in its usual twintail style that Harry had become fond on. Her blue eyes were alight with joy and warmth when she looked up into his. "How was your summer, my darling Harry?"

Harry chuckled a bit, wondering how long before her more...hotheaded tendencies would come out. He hugged her back before responding "It was good. It was rather lazy besides some spell training with Sirius. Other than that, we just watched TV and built models."

Daphne nodded, though she clearly didn't know what he was talking about. " I no not of these...models or this TV, but I am pleased you had a good summer." At this, she got an annoyed expression. "My parents decided to take Astoria and I on a summer long tour of Europe when we returned home. That is why my letters were so sparse over the summer."

Harry just raised an eyebrow and gave a teasing grin "I had just assumed you were enjoying time away from me."

"W-what?! Do not speak such non-sense. We went to such lengths to ensnare you. We would not merely throw you away on a whim!" Annnd there came her accidental use of plurals when talking about herself, though Harry did find her princess attitude and mannerisms rather amusing.

"I know, Daph. I'm just messing with you." He tilted her chin up, and placed a gentle kiss on her lips. Causing the girls eyes to widened before she blushed crimson. Unfortunately for them, the compartment door opened, revealing Ron, Su, and Hermione.

"As I told you, Ronald. This is the only occupied carriage we haven't checked so it has to be- Oh my!" Hermione's voice had gone from rationale to surprised rather quickly. Harry pulled his lips from Daphne, who had her hands on her cheeks and seemed to be...kya-ing to herself. He flicked his gaze to the newcomers.

"Hey you guys, how's it going?" Suffice to say, the rest of the ride was rather awkward.

Xxxxxxxxxxxx

"And so, we have two new additions to the Hogwarts staff this year. For the first time in quite a while, we have an assistant charms professor, who I am sure many of you will recognize from last year. Please extend a warm welcome to Professor Fleur Delacour-Carstair." The former Beauxbaton champion's addition to the staff had gotten some some murmurs from the rest of the student body, and there was a loud THUNK from somewhere around the Slytherin table, as if someone had bashed their head against the table. From his seat at Gryffindor table, Harry saw that Fleur had risen from her chair at the faculty table to give a small bow, before she sat back down.

'Hm, I bet Arien is upset that Fleur married someone besides him. I know they were rather close last year. And she's here another year? I feel bad for the guy.' Harry thought to himself. 'Don't know the guy that well, or his last name, but that's got to be rough.'

Dumbledore nodded in acknowledgment, before resuming his speech. "And for the Defense, we have Professor Delores Umbridge, who comes highly recommended by our esteemed Minister himself-"

"Hem, hem." Someone had cut off the Headmaster, which sort of bewildered the man. A small, toadlike woman waddled her way to the front of the staff table, and looked out at the student tables. "Thank for you kind words, Headmaster, but I would like to say a few words myself."

"By all means." Dumbledore acquiesced with a flourish of his hand, prompting the woman to offer a creepy smile to her captive audience.

"Now, blah blah blah-" She seemed to drone on about a bunch of crap like maintaining the status quo, discouraging progress, and pretty much a bunch of other pureblood supremacist dogwhistles against societal progress. Harry was annoyed, but definitely understood why Sirius told him to be wary of the woman. She gave him the creeps. He shook his head, before resuming his meal. All he could hope was she wouldn't be too incompetent or racist.

Xxxxxxxx

"Potter. You have to help me."

Harry just looked around confused, since he was currently alone in the corridor he was in. I The voice had sounded like Arien's but the guy was nowhere in sight. It had been a week since classes started, and besides Umbridge's awful teaching, it wasn't too bad so far. He was about to shrug and ignore it when the voice came again.

"Over here, man!" The voice had come from his left, behind one of the suits of armor. The helmet's visor flipped open to show Arien's face, which seemed to be sweating and looking super nervous.

"Arien? Why are you-" Arien didn't let him finish, cutting him midsentence.

"Look, I don't have a lot of time! She could be nearby!" While Harry wanted to ask who 'she' was, but allowed the frantic boy to continue.

"Fleur! She's relentless man!" Arien seemed like he was losing his mind.

"Fleur? Why would she be still pursuing you? She's married." The Beauxbaton's fascination with Arien had been common knowledge, just like his initial tendency to avoid her.

Arien just looked at him like he was stupid for some reason. "Yes! She's married TO ME!" He yelled, before frantically looking around the hallway. "Not important! You have an invisibility cloak! I need it! If only to ensure some quality slacker time!"

"You need my cloak...so you can be lazy?" Harry was becoming more confused by the minute.

"YES! Since she became a teacher she's such a stickler for the rules! I thought that would mean some kinky roleplay shit, not pressing me to actually do my homework!"

Harry just stared at the older Slytherin boy. Arien opened his mouth to speak again, when he suddenly went pale as a ghost.

"Oh god, she's _here_." The click of a pair of high heels became audible, echoing through the empty corridor. Harry turned to see the annoyed visage of Fleur Delaour-Carstair strutting down the hallway. She was wearing a pair of rimless glasses, long black robe over an immaculate button down shirt with tie, a business skirt, and a rather shiny wedding ring on her left hand. She came to a stop suddenly next to Harry, who she gave a small smile to, before she began to focus on the armor.

"Dear 'usband of mine, you slipped away again during 'omework time." Fleur spoke in a dangerously calm voice, though the pronounced twitch of her left eye was a good indicator of how irritated she was.

"There is no Arien here, only a suit of armor that became self aware." Harry had to give one thing to Arien: the guy was creative with his responses.

"You know, I would be inclined to believe you, if zis suit of armor 'ad been 'ere 10 minutes ago."

Fleur opened the visor back up to look her husband in the eyes, before sighing. " 'Onestly, Arien, I just want you to succeed. Now come along." She banished the fake armor, before dragging Arien by the collar towards the Slytherin dorm. She had cast a silencing charm on him, so his muted cries for help and reaching out towards Harry made for a very bizarre sight.

Shaking his head, he only hoped his own marriage wouldn't be so weird.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"How did I let you talk me into this?" Harry asked Hermione and Daphne for the seventh time that hour, standing in the Room of Requirement and watching the study group he'd set up for DADA. Apparently, he was not the only one who felt Umbridge was woefully incompetent as a teacher, and the group had grown in membership at an insane rate since the semester had started. Notable members included himself, Daphne, Hermione, Su Li, Ron, Neville, Blaise Zabini, Tracey Davis, and, when he bothered to show up, Arien. Despite doing little more than provide spell suggestions in between napping in a sleeping bag in the corner, Arien had made some valid suggestions. He'd gotten Fleur to sign off on the club as a sponsor, so that eliminated any need for secrecy that could have arisen down the line.

While Umbridge had been trying to gain more influence in the castle through outside influence, several of the older pureblood families in the Wizengamot had pointed out that the ministry only had influence on curriculum criteria. When Fudge had tried to vote to add more authority over the school, it was unanimously voted down, viewing it as a powergrab by the Minister of Magic. Many were wising up to Fudge's incompetency, and there were already talks of a vote of no confidence. This just seemed to drive Umbridge into greater insanity, causing her classroom to become her version of Azkaban. Of note, she seemed to only single out non-pureblood students. However, until it became more overt, there was little anyone could do. Harry did note, however, that Arien had been hanging around Umbridge's office, as if watching for something. When asked about it, Arien would make up various excuses, though his deflections never detracted from the serious look in his eye.

Harry shook his head, before returning his attention to the group. He had a detention that night with Umbridge, and he needed to wrap up the lesson on the Patronus charm early, lest her give the vile woman more reason to punish him. He took solace in the fact Mr. Slithers would be with him. His scaley friend had been lazier than usual that year, and often refused to leave Harry's bed. So with that in mind, Harry got everyone's attention, told them when the next meeting would be, before exiting the classroom, heading to the Defense classroom.

Xxxxxxxxxxxx

"Beloved...what is that on your hand?" Daphne's tone was icy and dangerous, and even though Harry could tell it wasn't directed at him, it still made him sweat a bit.

Currently, he was sitting with Daphne in the Room of Requirement, using the room's magic to conjure a couch and book case which they were now lounging on. Or they had been, until Daphne had noticed the marks on Harry's hand from his detentions. He cast his glance down at the back of her head, which was resting against his chest as the snuggled on the couch. He was wearing a sweater that Mrs. Weasley had made him, and some jeans, while Daphne was wearing his quidditch Jersey and some muggle jogging pants. She had apparently spotted the scar tissue when she had moved to hold his hand while she was reading.

"Oh this? This is just from my detention with Umbridge. She made me write lines in some weird quill. It hurts, but it's not fatal." Despite his attempts at mollifying Daphne, she just seemed to get more pissed off.

"Beloved, did this quill happen to be red and black?" Despite wondering why the color mattered, Harry nonetheless nodded in confirmation.

"Uh, yeah, it was actually. You familiar with them?" He stated then asked, curious why she seemed so upset about this.

"That quill, beloved, is not some thing to make children write lines it. It is a blood quill, and they are strictly to be used in signing magical contracts between various parties. This is a very serious offense. You are the heir to an Ancient and Noble House, and will probably end up as the heir to a second. You will-" She paused a moment, before a look of annoyance crossed her face. "I realize this will sound vaguely Malfoy-ish, but you will inform your father of this, and then Dumbledore. That woman has inflicted willful harm on an future head of house. She'll see Azkaban for this, of that I assure you."

Seeing the look in Daphne's eyes that clearly stated any deviations from her plans would mean serious pain, he nodded his head, and reached for some parchment.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Christmas Day, 1995 approximately 4:57 PM.

"Come on, pup. Why are you so worried? You're just meeting her parents." Sirius attempted to reassure Harry kindly, though he was unsuccessful in his attempt in doing so. Sirius, Harry, and Remus all stood in front of Grimmauld Place's fireplace, waiting for the chance to floo over to the Greengrass estate for their annual Christmas party. Since Harry was now involved with Daphne, they had seen fit to invite him to their residence to meet him. They were all wearing rather snazzy dress robes, and looking damn good, in Sirius' not so humble opinion.

"Sirius is right, Harry. The Greengrasses, despite their archaic manner of speech, are kind people. Hell, your families have been close allies for the better part of 80 years. Your grandfather Charlus fight side by side with Ulysses Greengrass in the war against Grindelwald. In fact, that's why the betrothal contract conversation came up to begin with. They wanted to unite their families together, because they were best friends. Charlus pouted for 4 months when he found out James wasn't interest because of Lily, and was only mollified when they agreed to betroth the next Potter and Greengrass child within acceptable age ranges of each other." Remus explained kindly, figuring that Harry would like some information about his family history.

"I didn't know that, Remus. What was my grandfather like? You and Dad talk a lot about my biological father and mother, but you've never really spoken of Grandfather. Was he a bad man?" While it was a fair thing to ask, Harry's question had only prompted Sirius and Remus to laugh.

"Oh man. Charlus Potter? A bad man? That's a good one." Sirius wiped a tear of laughter before continuing. "Pup, your grandfather took me into his house when I was disowned, and raised me as his own flesh and blood. The only reason he didn't formally adopt me was in case the rest of my horrible family died, I could still inherit the title of Lord Black. Ironically enough, that is exactly what happened. But the point is, your grandfather was an upstanding man."

Remus nodded his agreement. "That he was. He made sure I always had access to Wolfsbane as youth, free of charge. He was a lot like your father, except he was a man of the old school. But if we keep chatting about this, we'll miss the party."

Harry groaned, but nodded nonetheless. Gripping some floo powder, he yelled "Greengrass estate!" before jumping into the fireplace.

A few seconds later, he tumbled face first into a rather ornately decorated living room. The furniture looked like it was from the palace of a king, and the floors were made of sturdy oak. The walls were painted with a pleasant blue color, and Harry noted there were several cabinets filled with fine dining ware. He stood up, to brush the soot off his clothes, when a rather snooty laugh prompter him to notice a rather attractive blonde gentleman with a handlebar mustache and a fine pair of dress robes.

"I say, you must be Harry. I hope you'll forgive my laughter. Nothing personal, but the mishaps of this floo network are one of the most amusing sights I witness all year. Schadenfreude, as the Germans would say." The man rose from his seat, and stuck out a hand to Harry just as Sirius and Remus shot out of the fireplace, and landed on their feet. "Ah! Mr. Black and Mr. Lupin. It pleases me to see you both in good health!"

Sirius twitched at being called 'Mr" but Remus just kicked him in the shin so he would respond. "Ah, Alexander. It's been too long. I think the last time I saw you was a few weeks before my extended vacation in Azkaban." Sirius responded cordially, greeting their host.

"Ah yes. Dreadful business that. Many of the purebloods pushed for a trial, but Fudge roadblocked us, using your 'admission' as damning evidence." Sirius just waved the man off, none to concerned about the past.

"Don't sweat it, Alexander. I figured that's what had happened. Though, given the fact he's having to explain why one of his direct underlings was using a blood quill for punishment on future head of house, I doubt he'll stay in office through the holidays."

Alexander nodded, before returning his attention to Harry "Now, just a fair warning, Harry, I will have to give you the scary dad speech at some point this evening. Otherwise, I'd be missing out on one of Fatherhood's greatest joys. Again, nothing personal, old bean." Harry hesitantly nodded to the rather eccentric man, not really sure of what else to do. Luckily for Harry, he was saved by the arrival of a rather beautiful Asian woman with black hair. She wore typical pureblood dress robes, and Harry knew immediately this woman was Daphne's mother.

"Alexander... are you threatening our future son in law?" The woman was smiling, but the aura around her was dark and foreboding, her eyes narrowed at her husband while maintaining a cheery smile. She only had the fainted hints of an accent. Alexander just seemed to fall to his knees in front of his wife, nuzzling his wife's legs in an exaggerated fashion.

"Oh Natsume! You wound me, my cherry blossom! I would never threaten him! I was merely promising a series of unfortunate incidents if he harmed our precious dove!" The man was clearly at his wife's mercy, wailing for forgiveness as he cried.

"Oh! Well, that's fair I suppose." And suddenly, the aura of danger was gone, replaced by a sunny disposition and a cheery smile. "I am Natsume Greengrass. As you can see, my husband requires a...delicate touch, or else he tends to do rather stupid things." At his, Alexander just whimpered a bit more, causing his wife to sigh and just pat him on the head in a placating manner. "Now, dear, I will show our darling visitors to where Daphne and the other guests are currently at. Gentlemen, if you would follow me?"

Harry shared a look with Sirius and Remus, who were just as confused by this as he was. They all shrugged, and followed Natsume.

"I'm sure you're wondering. No, I am not from Britain. I actually met Alexander when he was touring Tokyo during a vacation before his seventh year at Hogwarts. I had just graduated from Japan's magic school myself, and was job hunting in Tokyo's magic district. I had bumped into some person, and they began to make a scene about it. Alexander saw this, and gallantly rushed to my rescue, like a charming prince. Only later did I realize he was a bit dim. But he was sweet, and the rest is history, as they say." Natsume spoke kindly, clearly enjoying the fond memories of her youth.

"I actually didn't know Daphne was half Japanese. I never thought too much about it, and she never brought it up." Harry stated sheepishly, a little embarrassed that he hadn't known that about Daphne.

"No, I imagine she wouldn't. We are not close to my side of the family. They are...traditionalist Japanese purebloods. They actually disowned me for marrying Daphne's father. As such, it's not something that our family mentions often."

"Then may I ask why you confided that with us?" Sirius asked before he could stop himself.

However, Natsume only smiled kindly and answered, "Because you will be part of the family eventually, Mr. Black."

Harry only blinked, but before he could inquire about that, a blonde blur slammed into him, signaling Daphne had tackle hugged him again. He sighed, but the giant smile on his face betrayed how pleased he was to see her.

She was wearing a blue silky dress, and her blond hair was tied into a bun on the left side of her head. She had a few pieces of accent jewelry, but nothing gaudy. All in all, Harry was awestruck...again. She looked up from her perch on his chest, eyes brimming with curiosity.

"Well...um, does my appearance please you, beloved?" Daphne asked in a whisper, not wanting to share this moment with anyone else.

Harry just gave a wry grin and nodded "I think I'm really starting like Christmas time, since I seem to get to see you in dresses like that." Judging from Daphne's now crimson face, Harry had said the right thing.

xxxxxxx

A few hours later...

The party was in full swing, and the adults were all rather drunk by this point. Sirius had apparently floo called Amelia Bones and proclaimed his undying love for her. Remus had apparently made Sirius write a love letter for him, to one Septima Vector. Alexander had falled at Harry's feet, begging him him to take care of his darling little princess. He had been shaking Harry like a cartoon character, until Natsume had picked him like a puppy and dragged him to some corner of the house for...something. Harry didn't recognize any of the other adults, so their obnoxiousness didn't seem relevant to him.

Currently, he was sitting a couch in the Greengrass's study with Daphne, relaxing by the fireplace. They snuck away from the other people their age, wanting some privacy, since Daphne's sister had been asking some rather inappropriate questions that evening. As such, they'd slipped into the study for some long over snuggle time. Daphne just sighed in contentment, before curling deeper into Harry's form.

"This is heavenly." It was a simple statement, but it was filled with a genuineness that Harry had come to enjoy about Daphne. Despite how confusing she had been during their first couple years, Harry had learned how to read her like a book. It had arisen from need, as Daphne still had as many issues communicating her feelings as he did, though their reasons were different.

"I agree, Daphne." Harry murmured softly into her hair, enjoying her scent. She twisted a bit so she could look at his eyes.

"You know...perhaps...you could show me these shows you partake with your father and uncle some day." At seeing his confused expression, she elaborated "I had been thinking that I should engage with more things that make you happy, since you indulge my tendencies for long hours of snuggling and reading. It is only fair to do so after all." She smiled gently at him, before placing a light kiss on his lips.

"Uh, that's really nice of you Daphne, but I honestly doubt a show about giant robots would appeal to you." Harry explained gently, trying not to discourage her.

"What is a...robot? And dare not presume our preferences beloved! We chose you afterall, against all rationality." She tried to use her mask of arrogance and deflect, but Harry knew her well enough to realize she had taken that as him not wishing to share his interest. He just pulled her tight against him, and buried his head in her blond locks.

"We can watch a few episodes together okay? I just didn't want you to feel like you had to enjoy all the things I do. That's all."

"We just worry you will leave us for some muggle girl with similar interests to you, that's all."

Harry couldn't help it. He laughed at her statement. This of course made Daphne angry, though.

"Why do you laugh? Surely this is nothing laugh over!" Her righteous anger blazed in her eyes, and Harry knew if he wished to avoid having his bits hexed off, he'd better explain quickly.

"I just think it's funny that you worry someone will steal me from you, when the opposite is much more likely." When she didn't attempt further harm, he continued "We're good for each Daphne, in so many ways that I don't see myself with anyone besides you. So don't worry. No muggle seductress is going to whisk me away from you. I promise."

At seeing her nod her head, he leaned back on the couch and tightened his hold on her. He wouldn't see her until after New Year, and you should never pass on the opportunity to snuggle your loved one, after all.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The wind bit at Harry's face, the rain only amplifying the cold February temperatures. His eyes were darting around the quidditch pitch, eyes frantically searching for the snitch. Gryffindor were playing Slytherin, and apparently Arien had made some big changes in how the team played since he'd taken over as captain. The game was even more neck and neck than usual, and Harry wasn't sure who was going to win. So far Arien had scored a lot goals on his own, and he'd set up even more. The score sat 100-160, with Slytherin holding the lead. Arien had apparently been aiming for this, because he'd had Crabbe and Goyle focusing bludgers almost exclusively on Harry the entire game. Harry was a better seeker than Malfoy was, and Arien had recognized this, ensuring steps were taking to level the field. Harry twirled to dodge another bludger, using the changing vantage to scan for the snitch again. He watched as Malfoy tried to bait him with a feint, but given there was no flash of gold, Harry knew it was just a ploy. Harry watched as Arien yelled something at Malfoy, which caused the blond boy to sneer and talk back, before Arien whipped his head back around furiously. Malfoy blanched, before he sped off around the pitch again. Harry was about to say something, when he caught a flash of gold next to the Gryffindor stands. He sped off immediately towards it, approaching the stands rapidly. He rotated himself carefully so as not to hit anyone in his pass, and quickly yanked the snitch out of the air, causing the red and gold section to burst into triumphant cheers. He did a victory lap, before he landed on the ground, where he was swarmed by his team. They all ruffled his hair, but got quiet when they saw the Slytherin captain and two of his teammates, Terrence Higgs(keeper) and Cassius Warrington(chaser), landing a few feet away. Harry watched as Arien with his players in tow strode calmly over to him, his expression blank. Angelina when Cassius and Terrence broke out into grins, which Arien followed suit, before sticking their hands out in a gesture of good sportsmanship, the tension evaporated.

"Wicked catch, Potter. If only we had a competent seeker on the team, maybe you'd actually have to work to win games, Johnson." The Gryffindor captain spluttered indigantly at Arien's statement, causing the three Slytherin players to laugh. "It was a good match Potter, but don't think you've gotten the cup just yet. We still have to play Hufflepuff, and they're the worst side in the school. So may the best team win."

"You just keep your players in line, Carstair, and you might just undo Flint's legacy as a dirty cheat." Arien just waved off the criticism, before turning around and heading to the Slytherin locker room with Higgs and Warrington in tow. They had been recent additions to the team, with Flint losing out to Arien for captain that year, and most of Flint's picks not making the cut. Apparently Flint had picked only purebloods with darker leanings for some unknown reason, and that had worked, for a time, until Gryffindor stepped up as rivals. At least that's what Arien had told him just before kick off when Harry had seen him instead of Flint as captain of the Slytherin team.

Shaking his head, he spotted Daphne striding confidently towards him, still wearing a jersey with his name on it, and her cheeks painted red and gold. She immediately grabbed him and planting a searing kiss on his face, prompting whistles from the crowd.

"Damn, you clearly love me more than your house team, because that was some reward." Harry said jokingly, prompting Daphne to flush pink and avoid his gaze.

"We were merely pleased you performed to your ability! It certainly didn't make us happy or anything to see you triumph!" Ah, it was always nice to see Daphne revert back to her confusing habits. Harry found it rather entertaining, though he would certainly never tell her that, lest he risk getting kicked in the shins.

He looked around at his team and betrothed/girlfriend, and had to admit, life was pretty good.

Xxxxxxxxx

To be continued...

**While I am totally loving this story a lot, I am starting to run out of things to write about. So if anyone has any suggestions, feel free to message me them. Can't promise I'll use them, but I'll hear anything out :)**

**And that's all for now. Don't know if I'll update this or Crazy Life next. Depends on if I'm able to drag myself from Left Alive. Such a fun game. **

**Anyways, Raizen out!**


	9. HR Alternative Perspective Chapter 3

**Another Arien Chapter. Probably won't be as long. As I said, I'm running out of ideas for stuff, and unless I start doing more quidditch, I may have to start wrapping this up soon, unless someone wants to hit me with ideas. * HINT HINT* **

**I really don't want to end this without at least finishing Harry's years at Hogwarts. So hit me with some date ideas or something peeps. **

**Hogwarts Rumble Alternative Perspective: Chapter 3: Never Upset the Wife. **

Arien was a little annoyed with his wife Fleur. She had failed to mention she would be teaching at Hogwarts until they were boarding the Hogwarts Express. She had also failed to mention they would be sharing quarters for married students, which were apparently a remnant of the old early betrothal tradition of the pureblood families at the school. This was the latest in a series of not so sexy surprises Fleur had been the center of in his life since the summer had started. The first?Arien and Fleur were basically forced to go through the formal courtship steps by their fathers over the course of the summer. Now, while this more or less meant that Arien stunned their chaperone, and then took Fleur to Muggle London for dates. He'd taken her to a muggle movie theater and to an amusement park. She was very...appreciative of his creativity with dates. He'd also taken her with him to a Vratsa Vultures game as part of his recruitment to the team, and while they were itching to sign him on a permanent basis, they had agreed to let him finish his schooling. This had been spurred on by a 4 game losing streak, and the fact the score line had only been saved Krum, so they were willing to capitulate to whatever demands he'd made. So he was now making some stupidly absurd amount of galleons for being a part time professional quidditch player during that summer, securing his favorite number (4) for his Jersey, and the first step of Blaise's master genius plan. Semi-unfortunately, Fleur had the rather distracting habit of transfiguring her robes into a muggle cheerleader outfit during the games he'd been a part of. It had been awesome right up until he'd flown into the stadium wall, which had sucked quite a bit. Fleur had ceased doing that when the replay pensieve had shown exactly why he had crashed, much to Fleur's embarassment. Though she HAD shown up to the medical tent dressed as a nurse and taken care of him. Surprisingly, neither of their parent's really cared they'd frequently stunned the person who was supposed to be watching over them and going off to do whatever they'd wanted. Apparently, it was some rookie Auror who'd pissed off Amelia Bones for some bigoted comment, so he'd been relegated to "protection detail".

Anyways, so yes. That continued right up until Fleur and himself had actually married at the end of June. The ceremony had been small, but pleasant. Gabby had been the ring bearer, Tracey had been the maid of honor, and Blaise the Best Man. They hadn't really wanted anyone more than that, and so with the usual marital fanfare, and a few fires being started in their hotel room the night of, they official became the Delacour-Carstairs. Which then leads the fair reader up to Arien finding out his wife was now undergoing a charms internship under Professor Filius Flitwick, meaning he would again get to spend the year with her. At first, he'd been ecstatic. Who doesn't dream of being with a sexy teacher? Yeah, no, Fleur apparently took this as her personal sign that Arien needed to have impeccable grades. No more settling for being 4th in his year without trying and no more sleeping through classes. Yes, Fleur Delacour-Carstair had become even more troublesome since he married her than he'd initially thought she'd be.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Arien, why are you 'iding from me? Do you not love me?" Fleur's dangerous voice was inquiring, looking for our lovably lazy deuteragonist. Arien had just arrived at their private quarters near the Slytherin Common Room. The married dormitory apparently was right next to Snape's quarters, which meant Arien had ZERO chance of being able to sleep in anymore. Arien just spent the last hour hiding in a suit of armor, and before that, ,had been under disillusionment charms to hide from Fleur. His reason for running? She had just outlined her five step plan to make him into the perfect student, and frankly, Arien was noping the hell out of there. So Arien defaulted on his typical strategy when he didn't like something: ignore/avoid it until it went away. Sadly, his wife was not having it, and she was a lot harder to ignore than his other problems. She had just finished dragging him away from Potter and placed him in the center of the floor, where he pouted like a child. She conjured some fire on her index finger, and poked him in the butt with it.

"AHHH! OW WOMAN! When I said you could touch my butt this is NOT what I had in mind!" Arien shot up off his perch, rubbing his now slightly smoking posterior. "What is your damage, Fleur?! Ever since this school year had started you've been insufferable! You act like I'm failing classes or something!"

"Iz it zo wrong I want my 'usband to be successful?!" Fleur yelled back at him with equal fervor, yanking him up by his collar and glaring at him eye to eye. "I do not wish you to be un'appy wizz your choices, mi amour!"

Fleur's eyes started welling up with tears. Lately, they'd been fighting a lot, because of Arien's grades. He'd insisted he had placed top four in everything, but she'd spoken to a blond house mate of Arien's, who had told her that her husband was failing!

"Why do you think I'm not successful?! I can literally point you to the contract I signed with the Vultures that made me 100,000 galleons a week! FOR A PART TIME CONTRACT!" Arien pushed his forehead against hers, hot breath on her face. "Why do you think I'm failing, Fleur?"

Her nostrils flared and she grabbed his head, fingers in his hair. "Becauze a blond boy in your 'ouse said so!" Arien's features went blank a moment, before he pulled away from her a moment and began chuckling darkly. He had pulled away from her, and was pacing around the room, muttering to himself

"Oh, Malfoy. You foolishly fiendish little ferret." Arien's laugh was starting to scare Fleur a bit, though the dark aura he was portraying didn't seem to be directed at her. He glanced back at her, before hugging her. "I am sorry, my silver flower. You have been duped. That ponce is not a friend of mine, and probably told you specifically to cause me problems."

Fleur was unsure why Arien now seemed to be in what she called "plotting mode". Arien's mother had told Fleur the first time she'd seen it that it was a trait of the males in the family. They were a little(a lot) more vindictive than the average person, and would spend hours devising convoluted revenge plots.

"Arien? I want you to swear to me you are not failing." Fleur's eyes were slightly tearful, because she'd been worried about her husband's future. Arien paused his muttering to himself, before he strode over to her, and placed a searing kiss on her lips, which dazed her. She was usually the one to initiate things, and she prided herself on making him grin like an idiot afterwards.

"As I said, my silver flower. You have been duped by a smooth talking ferret who has flow too close to the sun. Rest assured, the rodent problem will be deal with." Arien paused a moment, before he scooped his wife into his arms, and laid her on their bed, before tucking her in, and patting her on the head, which confused her. "Semi-related question, would you like to invest in a pet?"

Fleur opened her mouth the answer, but found she was now just very, very confused.

"Nevermind. Think about it. In the meantime, I'm going ferret hunting. I'll be back...sometime." Arien grabbed his wand, and left the room, his sinister laughter echoing down the halls. Fleur wasn't sure why, but she only hoped Arien didn't get himself expelled.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

A few months later...

It was yet another Hogsmead weekend of of the year, and while Fleur didn't understand what the fuss was about, Arien had promised he would take her out on a date. So naturally, she'd dressed pretty that day, wearing a skirt and cardigan, and light silver choker, as well as her usual glasses. She tossed her hair to the side, and ignored another student who'd chosen to approach her while she waited for her husband. She bit back a sigh of annoyance. She dressed like a nun practically everyday to convey she was HAPPILY married, and these...leetle boys still thought she was sending signals. She scoffed at that notion. "As if zey could comprehend the bond I 'ave wizz my Arien." She then placed her hands in her face, feeling slightly flushed which steamed up her glasses. Ever since they cleared up the misunderstanding, their relationship had been so much smoother, like it had been befroe the wedding, and before she'd started teacher. Though, didn't approve of Arien sitting in the lower year classes behind her desk while she taught them. He would wear glasses that had a permashine on them, and steepled his fingers in front of his face, so he looked like a villain. Many of the first years were rather terrified of him, right up until she'd transfigured him into a small weasel, and unleashed him on the class. She'd proceeded to baby talk him, and show him around the class. He'd made half hearted swipes at people who gave him pets, at least until they started scratching his chin.

"You're thinking about when you turned me into a weasel, aren't you?" Fleur turned to face the man who'd captured her heart, brushing a strand of hair out of her still flushed face. She noticed Arien had a half annoyed, half amused smirk on his face. He was wearing a typical pair of jeans, a green and silver shirt, a jacket, and his school scarf. All in all, Fleur thought the boy looked rather nice.

"I waz. It iz not my fault you make such a cute weasel. Though, you were a fat weasel, which iz weird, since you are rather slim." She began to tap her chin in thought. "Maybe we should get a weazel. They are cute, and like furry noodles." She looked at him rather innocently, her silver eyes practically begging him. This caused him to sigh, but the smile on his face betrayed him.

"Fine. I'll apparate and get you one before the day is over. Okay?" Arien stated to his wife in a placating manner. He knew he'd made the correct choice when her face lit up into a billion watt smile. He wondered if he could talk to them with legillimency like he could with snakes?

Shaking his head, he proceeded to grab Fleur's hand, which caused the girl to let out a strange...squeal like noise, before they leisurely made their way to the carriages that would carry them to the village proper. During the carriage ride, she laid her head on his shoulder, and took a short nap. Arien could hardly blame her, since she'd spent the past weeks perfecting her teaching approach, lesson plans, and grading small assignments to the point of neglecting her sleep. He brushed a lock of silver hair away from her face, before placing a gentle kiss on her forehead. This action prompted squeals from the other carriage occupants, much to Arien's annoyance. He shifted his gaze to them, before they began to fidget.

"Sorry." He mumbled, not really meaning it, but felt it better to feign apologies. Blaise had emphasized that was something he needed to work on.

The 3rd year girls shook their heads emphatically, before one actually spoke. "No, it's fine. We just aren't used to Mrs. DC being so...peaceful. She's rather intense in classes, and she's usually annoyed because some of the dumber boys in our class still ask her out. She usually just laughs haughtily and calls them 'leetle boyz', before resuming the lecture topic." One of them explained in an apologetic manner.

"Yes, that does sound like something my wife would do. She doesn't really deal well with stupidity. At least she didn't set them on fire." Arien commented offhandedly, prompting the girls to look at him incredulously.

"Well, um...you guys are very adorable together. We saw you guys dancing in an abandoned corridor last year. It was super sweet." The second girl said excitedly, clearly enjoying the romance talk.

Arien just coughed awkwardly, wondering how much of that particularly instance they'd seen. Twas not for small eyes after all. "Thanks, we try. We have our issues like any other couple, but my silver flower here is the only person besides my best friend who keeps me grounded. She completes me in ways I didn't know I needed." Arien paused to stroke Fleur's hair, not noticing the smile that was breaking out on her face. "Don't let anyone who knows about my quidditch career fool you, she's the one who is settling for me. This brilliant woman could have any man she wanted- OW!" He had been about to continue when Fleur reached up and flicked him on the nose, before she rose up and stretched like a cat.

" 'onestly Arien. You were saying such wonderful zings, and zen you go and be zelf-depricazing again. You'd zink ze fact I married you, and dress like a nun in ze most unflattering robes I can would indicate 'ow I only 'ave eyes for you." She placed a gentle kiss on his cheek, before snuggling back up, prompting the girls to release a sigh of longing.

The rest of the ride passed uneventfully, and soon the power couple found themselves at the entrance of Hogsmead. Fleur looked around the quaint little village, which hadn't changed that much since she'd last seen it. Fleur sneakily reached for her husband's hand, before wrapping herself on his arm.

"Well, lead on, dear. Zis was your idea." Fleur stated lazily from her perch on Arien's shoulder. "We could 'ave just had anozher picnic and I would 'ave been 'appy."

"Yes, but I LIKE spending galleons on you. Plus, going to this place is like...a right of passage for couples at Hogwarts, or so I'm told." Arien spoke in amusement, before leading them towards the gaudy tea shop of Madame Puddifoot. Upon entering, they were assaulted by a wave of perfume, incense, and tea. Both Arien and Fleur's jaws dropped a bit a sight before them, with the overwhelming sea of pink and hearts everywhere. They shared an incredulous look, before slowly taking a seat at an empty table near the back.

"This is...horrifying." Arien stated in a dead voice.

"My god. Zere is so much pink! I 'ave never zeen so much pink in one place before." Fleur was wide eyed and confused. "Maybe ze food will be decent, at least." She stated hopefully, as she really didn't want the first real date they'd had together in a few months be a dud.

They waited about ten minutes, before they tried to flag down a server, only to be continually ignored. Sharing a look, they nodded at each other, before standing and leaving. When they got outside, Fleur looked at him a moment, before she burst into laughter.

"O' my god, Arien. Were we not making ze googly eyes enough for ze servers?" She managed to get out between laughs. "Oh. I needed zat laugh, zank you, my love." She wiped a tear from her eye before beaming up at him.

Arien just blushed a bit, before scratching the back of his head sheepishly. He just glanced around, before casting a tempus, noting it was only around 1 in the afternoon. "What do you say we get some food at the Three Broomsticks, and then go flying around the castle grounds?"

Fleur nodded happily before taking his arm, and allow Arien to lead them to the pub.

Xxxxxxxxx

"ARIEN! I AM GOING TO KILL YOUUUUUUU!" Fleur screamed in his ear as she clutched him for dear life as Arien did another divebomb on his broom towards the lake, pulling up and skidding a hand across the surface of the water as they flew by, world inverted from flying upside down. Arien just laughed as he felt his wife clutch him tighter while they zoomed around the air. He would have done another dive but he felt his ribs cracking from how tightly Fleur was gripping him.

"Urk- Fleur...can't...breathe..." He wheezed out, as they began to slow down. Fleur slowly looked up, slacking her grip on her husband, before she began to smack him in the back with a fist repeatedly. "OW! WOMAN, STOP HITTING ME!"

"I WILL STOP 'ITTING YOU WHEN YOU STOP DOING MEAN THINGS!" She ceased her smacking him in the back, before she gripped the back of his shirt with her left hand. "You know I 'ate when you fly like zis. I worry your broom will mezz up and you will get 'urt."

"Aw come on, Fleur. I'm by no means immortal but you know I'm a damn good flyer, and I check my broom once a day. We were never in danger, my silver flower." Arien placated, speaking softly to his clearly stressed out wife. He glanced back to see the top of her silver mane buried into his back.

"I am not used to zis. Please...can we just...float here for a bit?" She tightened her grip on his torso, though in a much more gentle fashion this time, occasionally rubbing his chest with her thumbs. "I want to watch ze sunset wizz you."

Arien took one hand off the broom, and wrapped it around Fleur's, intertwining their hands and resting them on his thigh. A soft smile played on his lips, before he nodded. "As you wish." He spoke softly, feeling his wife's heartbeat against his back.

"Good. When we land, you can go get me zat weasel you promised me."

Arien merely groaned in annoyance.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

May 20, 1995...

"Awwww, who iz Maman's good leetle weazel? You are!" Fleur's cooing voice sounded from a few feet away as Arien sent another Sectumsempra spell at the target dummy, slicing it cleanly in half. They had decided to hang out in the Room of Requirement as a semi-date that evening. Fleur had suggested he use the occasion in the room to practice some spell work while she graded some papers, though she was getting distracted by her new-ish pet weasel. She'd named him Antoin, for reasons Arien still didn't understand. His snake was curled around Fleur's ankle, enjoying the natural warmth she put off as a Veela. He shook his head, before throwing another spell at the dumb, the lightning hitting his and vaporizing the spot where the heart would be.

"O' my! Do you zee zat, Antoin? Your Papa iz so brutal and scary." Arien flicked his gaze to the side, seeing her once again holding Antoin in a protective fashion while baby talking him. "O' what if he 'urts your poor maman?"

"Could you maybe not talk to the weasel like I'm not here?" Arien grit out in annoyance. She was trying to mess with him, like she often did.

"Oh, my leetle baby! See 'ow irritable 'e iz!" She fake wailed, drawing a hand to her forehead in mock distress. " O' me o' my, whatever will I do to escape zis man's clutches!"

Arien twitched again, before calming sheathing his wand in its holster, before he strode quickly over to his wife. She flitted a hand over her mouth as she slowly backed up to the wall. Arien placed a hand beside her head, before he leaned down to her ear, and whispered.

"You clearly wanted my attention. Well, now you have it." Her breathing hitched, before he saw her shiver in anticipation. "Don't play games you can't win, my silver flower."

He gently cupped her chin, before he placed a kiss on her lips. She tried to deepen it, but he pulled away. He looked her in her blue orbs, which were currently half lidded and smoldering at him. Smirking, he winked at her, before walking back to the test dummy, and readying another spell. He glanced back at Fleur, who was tapping her foot angrily at the snubbing of her manipulations for some loving. He smirked again. Maybe that would teach her to just be straight-forward with what she wanted. He was about to throw a spell when the floor beneath him suddenly turned into a pool, and he fell in. Okay, maybe she wouldn't. Either way, his life certainly wasn't boring, and Fleur eventually got what she wanted that night, papers left ungraded on the room's desk.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

To be continued.

**Sorry for the delay. Between school, and a series of bad reviews on a few of my fics, my motivation to write was killed for a bit. I just needed to take some time to myself, while I thought hard about what I wanted to do with the story I have the most plans for (Crazy Life). This was the most completed out of the work I had so far, so I decided to finish it and upload it. The next one probably won't be up till May when I'm finished with school for the semester. **

**Until then,**

**Raizen out.**


	10. chapter 6

**And I'm back following a hectic finals week. Sorry it took so long. I also was putting it off due to lack of ideas. Though, to the reviewer who gave me the idea of muggle movie date, you are awesome, and I send you virtual hugs. **

**Back to our favorite Gryffindor and Slytherin couple. Ayyyy. **

**For the sake of my own sanity, I need to say this. If you do not like the story, then don't fucking read it. And if you don't have any positive notes or helpful feedback to make about it, then keep your opinions to yourself. This is a gag-story I write for fun _without compensation_. If you're looking for serious, you're in the wrong place. Honestly, why i even subject myself to this astounds me. **

**Chapter 6: All the Fluff**

Harry's summer had started normally, with the usual shenanigans he got into with his dogfather and uncle starting in earnest literally the second he stepped off the Hogwarts Express. Usually, this meant Remus or Sirius blasting him with Super-Soakers. They'd developed a keen fondness for the devices since they'd seen an add for them on one of their anime DVDs. Sirius had a pool built in their basement over the course of the school year specifically to have more of an excuse to use them, though the two men were apparently comfortable enough with the devices to use them in public as grown men. The saying rings true: aging is mandatory, but growing up is optional.

That had been a few weeks ago, and Harry was currently rather nervous. Now, why is our lovably awkward hero nervous you may be asking? The reason is rather simple. He was taking Daphne on a movie date for a double feature. First they were seeing the Pokemon Movie, which was something Harry had gotten into with guardians over the Christmas break while they were out buying models. Sirius and Remus were tagging along, considering they loved the show as much as Harry did, though they'd assured him they would sit elsewhere so as not to disturb their child on his big date. So here Harry was, about to introduce his betrothed to both muggle culture and the fact he was a nerd. He'd at least tried to dress normally, though he couldn't help himself from wearing a black T-shirt with an Eevee on it to the movie, though he topped it off with a light fashionable jacket and jeans, so he still managed to look rather decent, in his humble opinion. He was hopeful she wouldn't judge him too harshly, though she was prone to acts of irrationality sometimes, so he wasn't entirely sure. His negative thinking was interrupted by the fireplace crackling suddenly, before the prim and aristocratic form of Daphne Greengrass shot out of the Floo network. Harry couldn't help but blush when he saw her. She wore a snug fitting shirt that somewhat emphasized her feminine features along with a skirt that displayed her tone legs for him to see. She had a pair of nice looking sunglasses on her head, which was in the usual twintail style. She regarded him a moment, before her brows knit in confusion upon reading his shirt.

"Beloved? What is this...Poke-mon? And what is the name of this...strangely cute creature?" She asked in a confused but curious manner, before moving over to greet him.

Harry gulped, before he decided to answer as vaguely as he could. "It's a show I watchwith Sirius and Remus. It's from you mother's homeland actually. It's about animals that have these cool powers and people train them to compete in battles with." He noted that she seemed somewhat interested, but was confused by a lot of what he said.

"These...creatures have powers? So they are like magical animals then? And are they as cute as the one of your shirt?" She asked, trying to gather information about one of her beloved's interests.

"Not all of them. The one on my shirt is an Eevee. It can transform into a few different forms, but he's my favorite. One of the movies we are going to see is apart of this series. I hope that is okay?" His voice took on a somewhat insecure tone at the end, causing Daphne to sigh.

"Beloved, please do no be so foolish. You are introducing me to muggle culture and something dear to you. That means I shall endeavor to enjoy it as well, because it makes you happy." She hugged him tightly, before pulling away. Harry couldn't help but beam at his betrothed, who became slightly flustered at his joy. "S-stop looking at us with such joy. It was no trouble."

Harry just shook his head at Daphne being Daphne, before he took her hand, and led her out the door to hail a taxi. After all, it wouldn't do at all to be late for their first muggle date.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxx

Harry sat baffled, as he looked at the newest potions professor, one Horace Slughorn. Apparently, the man ran an exclusive club called the Slug Club, which was some attempt to cultivate connections to further the ambitions of the next generation of successful individuals. Harry, despite now being aware of his status as the heir of House Potter and Black, was still very uncomfortable in a formal party setting. Luckily, Daphne was with him, and she was performing what she called the "duties of the Lady Potter". He felt it was somewhat of a sexist statement, but when he raised that point to her, she had this to say:

"This just means I'm pulling the strings here, beloved."

harry laughed but gently reminded her that she didn't have to merely be the Lady of House Potter. She could do whatever she wished, because she was his partner, not his property. This prompted Daphne to hug him tightly and thank him for once again being unlike others in their world, who would have taken advantage of the situation and turned her into a trophy wife. Still, they were quite the pair at the Slug Club, though they were certainly not the only shining stars of the party. Arien and Fleur were there, as were Zabini and his girlfriend Tracey. Daphne had inadvertently forced him to converse with Arien and Blaise when she went off with Fleur and Tracey, leaving him with the two older boys.

"Potter."

"Zabini."

"Carstair-Delacour." At Arien's odd statement, both Harry and Blaise looked at him oddly. Arien just shrugged. "What? I didn't want to be left out of the tense greetings."

"Is he always this weird, Zabini?" Harry asked before he could help it.

"No. He's usually much worse. He uses Legillimency to talk to his pets, specifically in front of Muggleborns."

"To intimidate them?"

"God no. He just likes to mess with them. Or he did, until Fleur transfigured him into a weasel again, forcing him to hang out with his pets as contemporaries for a few hours."

"Great, Blaise. Just tell Potter all of the embarrassing things my wife does to me." Harry watched the back and forth between the two friends, amused by their antics. He was about to jump in when he felt someone clap him on the shoulder. Harry turned, finding it was Neville who was behind him.

"Neville! Did Lisa ditch you as well?" Harry greeted then ribbed his friend playfully. Neville raised a brow, before pointing to where the groups' better halves were. Apparently the boys all been ditched, probably so the girls could talk about them.

About fifteen minutes passed where the four of them idly chatted about the school year and Quidditch, before the playful debate over who's team had better chances at the Quidditch Cup was interrupted by Professor Slughorn himself.

"Harry, my boy, this charming fourth year wanted to speak with you, so I offered to introduce you two." Horace spoke jovially, gesturing to the giggling mess of a girl beside him. "May I introduce Romilda Vane-" He was cut off by the rather aggressive arrival of Daphne, who had a sickly sweet smile on her face with her eyes completely closed and an aura of death around her. "Erm, Miss Greengrass, can I help you? I was introducing Miss Vane here-"

"To my betrothed, yes, I noticed." Daphne answered, her voice echoing the sickly sweetness that her smile radiated, with just a smidge of impending doom lurking underneath.

Horace and Romilda clearly hadn't expected to hear that, with both of them going white as a sheet. Horace because he'd committed a grave faux pas and Vane because betrothals were serious business, meaning Harry was off the market for good.

"Er, betrothed?" Horace asked nervously, hoping she had simply been joking.

"Oh yes, very much so. My beloved and I were betrothed by our grandparents, though we are quite happy together." Daphne's steely blue gaze cut to Romilda, eyeing the brunette like a falcon would a mouse. "He even took me on a date to a muggle movie theater." Daphne's stoic visage shifted into a vicious smirk, knowing that a pureblood like Vane would be aghast at the idea of being taken on a Muggle date, as if that somehow trumped the fact they were effectively married already. Both Horace and Romilda realized they'd overstayed their welcome, before they quietly excused themselves and trudged off dejectedly. Daphne eyed them disdainfully for a few moments longer, before she turned to Harry with a dazzling smile.

"Uh, hi Daph..." Harry stated dumbly, though he was a bit flattered over the protectiveness his betrothed displayed over him.

"Greetings, beloved. I apologize for my actions. I had overheard that girl bragging to her friends earlier in the evening about 'bagging Harry Potter'. As such, it was my firm duty to display that you are mine as much as I am yours." She explained simply, before reaching over to caress his face, rubbing Harry's cheek with her thumb. He let out a noise of contentment. "Had she merely wished to be your friend, I need not have involved myself."

"I admit, it's nice having a beautiful girl be protective of me. Before Hogwarts, I didn't really have anyone who'd be defensive of me or even want to be associated with me." Harry admitted sadly, placing a hand over Daphne's on his cheek. He saw her eye twitch in annoyance, though he could tell it wasn't at him.

"Beloved, merely say the word and I will destroy these insolent muggles that dared to make you feel such sadness. They shall rue the day they were conceived in their squalor mudshacks-MMPH!" As amusing as Daphne's rants were, Harry decided it was better to cut her off with a kiss before she got descriptive with her threats. She flailed her her free arm a bit in exasperation, and her eyes widened a bit, before they fluttered closed and she hugged him tightly. A few moments later, he pulled away before resting his forehead against hers, feeling the soft texture of her blonde bangs against his scar. He thought he heard Blaise and Arien snickering in amusement, but he didn't care. All he could focus on was Daphne.

"As much as I enjoy hearing you threaten my enemies with bodily harm and irreparable maiming, we are at a fancy dinner party. The exact types of events you tell me to be more involved in, my love."

Her face was still flushed red, but she puffed out her cheeks at his gentle admonishment.

"Apologies, beloved, you are correct. We must forge some connections, or else us suffering the presence of that walrus was all for naught." She paused, before turning briefly to squeal into her hands, as she often did when he managed to overwhelm her. She coughed, before leading him across the room to talk to various people.

As the night went on, he made a lot of new acquaintances, though he was shocked to see Daphne's sister with Colin Creevey. Given how Astoria was snuggled contently into Colin's shoulder, Harry reckoned they had been dating for a while. Shaking his head, he could only muse if the rest of the parties would be this weird.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"My beloved is going to win this game for Gryffindor." Daphne stated calmly to her fellow onlookers. Currently, Daphne was sitting with Tracey, Fleur, Lisa, and Su, watching the end of year Quidditch cup match between Slytherin and Gryffindor. Daphne was currently wearing one of Harry's jerseys, while Fleur wore one of Arien's. Tracey and Blaise were making plots to sell Arien's school quidditch gear to his fans, while Su and Lisa just chatted animatedly with Neville about the likelihood of Malfoy catching a bludger in the face, with the two Ravenclaws actually doing calculations on parchment. Neither girl was particularly fond the blonde rat, as he had spent the majority of their school years tormenting their respective boyfriends. So naturally, any chance to observe him in pain was taken with great enthusiasm.

Daphne sent another glare at Fleur, who was bragging about how Arien was about to go fulltime for the Vratsa Vultures to anyone who would listen to her.

"Professor, perhaps you should be more concerned on this game, as it your husband's more imminent concern." Daphne said coolly, not taking her eyes off of Harry, who had almost made Malfoy smack into a wall with some feints. She watched as Arien, who'd once again been made captain of their house team, screamed at Malfoy for playing poorly. They both flew off, trying to clinch a victory for their team. Much to Daphne's annoyance on her beloved's behalf, Harry had to catch the snitch soon, or else his team was going to lose. Arien had pounded home fundamentals this season, and it was showing off. They'd won against every other house team with a significant margin, even with Malfoy's abysmal stats for the season. So despite the valiant efforts of Harry and his team, it didn't look like they were going to win since it was 290 to 140. Suddenly, Daphne saw Harry shoot off into the stands, zipping like a maniac between the support beams, until he flew very close to the ground. He did a few corkscrews before he leapt from his broom and tumbled on the ground, causing Daphne's breath to hitch a moment. She heard the announcer yell something, before Harry stood up, snitch in hand. He'd tied it up!

Or so she'd thought, until she saw that Arien had slotted home another goal in the confusion, putting the final score at 300-290, with Slytherin's lead. She watched as Harry seemed to become sad, before she saw Arien fly down to the pitch, and over to Harry. She watched the older boy immediately pull her betrothed into a hug, before clapping him on the back, and raising their hands to the crowd in a show of sportsmanship. The crowd ate it up, before Madame Hooch flew down and hugged both boys, before casting a Sonorous spell.

"Ladies and Gentlemen. There you have it. The winner of the Quidditch Cup is Slytherin, though that might have been the most intense and close match I've seen in the past decade!" The declaration got loud cheers from the Snakes, before they settled down. Arien gave a speech since it was his last game at Hogwarts, and thanked everyone who'd supported him, particularly his wife Fleur and his brother Blaise. Daphne watched as Fleur blushed crimson, before hiding her face with her pets, though the snake resting on the weasel only looked mildly annoyed. She stood up, before making her way down to where she would meet Harry, ready to console him over the loss. She weaved through the stands, until she found herself outside the locker room. She idly hummed for about 10 minutes, before Harry walked out tiredly, though his eyes lit up when he saw Daphne and what she was wearing.

"Daph, have I ever mentioned how good you look in one of my jerseys?" He teased lightly, before pulling her tightly into a hug.

"L-Let me go, you fool! I did not say you may touch me with your dirty hands!" Despite her words, she hugged him tightly, taking in the smell of his shampoo on his wet hair. "You played well, beloved."

"Yeah, well, Slytherin is fucked next year. They won't have a professional chaser to carry their asses to the finals." He muttered with annoyance, though she could feel the tension leaving as he stroked her hair tenderly, placing a kiss on her temple periodically.

"You know, beloved, there was a scout from Puddlemere United who was specifically watching you. He asked me before the game started if you were interested in trying out for their team. I told him that, as your agent, I would run the offer by you." Her words got an amused grin out of Harry, before he kissed her lightly. She hummed into it, before she pulled away. "And why, pray tell, did you feel you could kiss me?"

Harry's grin only widened, before he released her and took her hand, before they walked off to the castle.

"Well, come now. I have to pay my 'agent' somehow, don't I?"

At seeing his easygoing smile, she laid her head on his shoulder as they walked.

"Yes, dear, I suppose you do."

xxxxxxxxxxxx

To be continued...

**Despite what you may believe, no I didn't abandon this. I was just struggling to finish it between my other story ideas and stuff. Not to mention games keep distracting me. **

**At any rate, more sugarly fluff for your enjoyment. **

**Until next time,**

**Raizen out.**


	11. HR Alternative 4!

**So HR is back after a break. Needed to find new inspiration for it. This one is going to be so fucking sweet your FACE WILL MELT. Maybe. Probably. Either way, my snuggly readers, prepare to enjoy some good wholesome fluff. I'll try to finish this in the next week or two, which should not be hard given I only plan to have two more chapters after this, which are likely going to be epilogues for both pairings. **

**The beginning may be a little angsty, but I felt it was something you guys were probably wondering about. The history of Caroline and Arien. **

**Either way, thanks for coming for the ride peeps. **

Hogwarts Rumble Alternative Chapter 4

September 1, King's Cross Station...

It was funny. Arien wasn't usually one for nostalgic sentimentality, and yet, as he looked at the Platform 9 and 3/4s for the last time boarding it as a student, he couldn't help but feel a little...sad. His time in Hogwarts was generally pleasant beyond his 4th year, and he wouldn't trade the times Blaise and himself had spent in the castle for anything. Still, after this year, he wouldn't be able to be nearly as lazy as he had been, because of troublesome Quidditch Coaches and Medical training. That wouldn't be as fun, though as he looked over at Fleur talking excitedly with his parents and the Zabinis, he felt a small smile creep onto his face. He watched his wife interact with his family for a few more minutes, before he slowly walked over to them. Before he could reach them, he felt a tug on his shirt. He turned around, half expecting it to be a first year who was unsure of where to go, though he froze when he saw who it was.

"Hello, Arien. I was hoping we could talk?" The face of the girl who'd destroyed his heart in fourth year, Caroline Prewitt, was gazing up at him hopefully, twirling a lock of her brown hair. He shut down, panic nipping at his head, he didn't want to be around her, he didn't want to talk to her-

"Arien! My beloved 'usband!" Came Fleur's voice from behind him, as she hugged him from behind, placing her chin on his shoulder. He couldn't see it, but Fleur narrowed her eyes at the 7th year Hufflepuff girl in front of them. He felt Blaise slide up beside him, with his brother placing a comforting hand on his shoulder.

Arien took a deep breath, feeling Fleur begin to rub gentle circles on his chest and pouring positive emotions through their bond. He then turned a rather cold gaze onto his ex, who flinched at his look.

"Caroline." He began simply. "What do you want? You haven't made any efforts to talk to me since I caught you cheating on me in our 4th year. So forgive me if I'm not exactly thrilled to see you."

"I..." Caroline recoiled at the comment, before she settled herself. "I just wanted to talk to you. About...about everything. Alone." She finished nervously, her gaze flicking between Fleur and Blaise, who did not look happy to see her at all.

This was likely due to the fact Blaise had taken it upon himself to show Fleur his memories of Arien in the time after his break up with Caroline. Needless to say, Fleur did not ever want see her beloved that hurt ever again. The fact said object of misery just showed up uninvited was even more so annoying.

"Whatever you have to say, you can say in front of my wife and my brother." Arien stated with as much confidence as he could, given how the icy fingers of panic still gripped him.

Caroline's eyes widened at the mention of "wife".

"Your-, oh. Okay, I wanted us to get back together." She stated rather lamely, her eyes refusing to meet Arien and his friends. Arien however, had a much different reaction. He laughed.

"Are-" More sarcastic laughter. "Are you being serious right now?"

Caroline ignored his bitter laughter, and nodded her head.

"Caroline, if you wanted us to stay together, you shouldn't have been running around with Diggory behind my back when we were together. For God's sake, I caught him _inside_ you, something you told me repeatedly you wanted to wait for marriage for. And that's not taking into account how much you tried to change me when we dated. I was miserable when we were together Caroline. I was just too blinded to realize it."

"I'm sorry! I just- I-"

"Found out he got signed by the Vratsa Vultures?" Blaise had decided to go for the kill, not holding anything back.

Caroline's eyes widened, before she covered her mouth. "What? NO-"

"Really? Because I find it odd that you just so happen to reach other two days after Arien's face is on the front cover of the Daily Prophet, formally announcing his contract with the Vultures."

Immediately, Caroline's demeanor changed.

"I didn't even want to do this. I only came over here because my mother made me. She wanted me to be the pureblood Quidditch star again after she saw your picture, and since I've been single beyond some flings since Diggory dumped me in fifth year for Chang when I told him what I did to you." Caroline paused, shaking her head a bit. "I couldn't stand to be around you, Arien. I still can't. You have so much anger and darkness inside of you, it terrified me. I know it was never towards me or anything, but that was why you were never anything more than a means to get Cedric's attention to me. I'm sorry."

"I have darkness inside me? Look at you, Ms. Holier than Thou. You used me, dated me for 8 months just to get the attention of your real target." Arien sneered at her, before he turned around and walked off, Fleur and Blaise in tow. Before he boarded the train, he glanced back at Caroline. "I may have a lot of darkness inside me, but at least I never used people the way you did. And for the record? I'm a halfblood. Goodbye, Caroline. Hopefully forever, this time." He finished angrily, before he went inside the train cabin, with Blaise shutting the door behind them.

No one said a word until they entered an empty compartment. Blaise silently put their magically shrunk luggage on the rack, while Arien took a seat next to the window, angrily glaring out at the station. Fleur stood in front of him, before she knelt before him, taking his hands and placing them on her face.

"My Arien, I am so proud of you for not going off on her like I know you wanted to. I could tell you had so much more to say to zat 'arpy." Fleur then kissed one the palm of his left hand. Her words, prompted him to snort a bit. "Though, she mentioned you have a darkness inside you, but I've never seen it."

"She's referring to the reason I originally wanted to study healing arts." Arien commented bitterly, ashamed of his original reason for wanting to learn to heal.

"O'? And what iz zis mysterious reason?" Fleur tried to sound joking, but then realized how serious Arien's expression was.

"My surrogate mother was killed by Death Eaters 2 months after I was born. She was a muggle, and while my parents had met her at an agency for that sort of thing, she had wanted to be a part of my life as an aunt. I never got to know her because of those bastards." Arien ground out angrily, casting his eyes to look at the floor.

"Arien, I am so sorry. But...how does zis relate to your dream?"

"Because I originally started studying it so I could prolong their suffering after I found them."

Silence filled the cabin, with Fleur opening her mouth several times to say something, but stopping. After a moment, Arien lifted his gaze to look her in the eyes, and she could see she expected to rebuke and disdain him.

"You said that was your plan. What changed?"

"The fact my father hunted them down and killed them himself." Arien said, laughing mirthlessly. "He told me it was to prevent an unnecessary stain on my soul. Not that I really cared, but robbed of my ambition, I felt lost. I was kind of a broody kid."

"Yes, you were." Blaise chimed in helpfully, though he silenced when Arien shot him a withering glare.

"So?" Fleur pressed, making sure to firmly hold one of Arien's hands, even when he tried to pull away.

"So I went to burn my textbooks, but I saw a case study in the mind healing section. On Frank and Alice Longbottom." Upon seeing Fleur's lack of recognition, he elaborated further. "They were two Aurors who were tortured into insanity by high profile Death Eaters. They were also associates of my father. When I read about how lacking the magical attempts at healing were...I think that's when I knew what I wanted to do. One ambition died, and another rose in its ashes."

"Zat is beautiful, mon amour." Fleur brought Arien's hand to her lips, placing a gentle kiss on it. "Je t'aime. And nozzing you do will change that. Everyone has some darkness within. Zat leetle girl was a fool."

Arien locked eyes with the silver haired woman he'd married, and felt relief wash over him at seeing no judgment in her azure pools, a smile broke out on his face. At least, before his expression turned mischievous

"You realize your closer to a harpie than she is, Ms. Veela." He replied with a teasing grin, though his eyes still reflected some sadness.

"Yes, yes, my love. Get your kicks out. Zat is the only time I won't set your pants on fire for such a bad joke." Fleur kissed his palm again, before nuzzling her cheek against his hand, Arien now gently rubbing her face with his thumb.

He was about to reply, when their compartment door shot open, to reveal the very annoyed face of Tracey Davis.

"So I heard She-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named tried to win back Arien."

Blaise opened his mouth several times to say something, but for once, seemed to be speechless. So he did the next best thing to shut up his betrothed, and kissed her.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

October, Hogwarts, Office of Horace Slughorn. 1800 hours...

Apparently, with the return of Horace Slughorn to the Hogwarts faculty, so too returned the Slug Club. This club, for all intents and purposes, was a brown-nosing festival, for the sole purpose of cultivating rapport among the powerful and influential.

So naturally, Arien was just about ready to blast most of them into oblivion. Between the idiots brazenly hitting on his wife in front of him, to the idiots trying to curry up to him and Viktor Krum for connections to their club team, Arien was just about 2 comments away from caving in one of the walls and drowning them all in the Black Lake.

"Da, these fools are very foolish, no?" Viktor said in annoyance, before handing Arien a glass of Bulgarian firewhiskey. "You look like you could use this. If only to spare the rest of us from your wrath." The ace seeker commented jokingly, getting a slight grin out of Arien, before holding his glass up to the dark haired Slytherin expectantly.

"Thanks, mate. Cheers." Arien clinked his glass against his teammates, as they leaned against the upper railing, gazing down at the rest of the party goers. Horace was apparently extremely connected in the wizarding world. Vampires, quidditch stars, politicians, and entrepreneurs all reunited under the Slug Club banner tonight. Arien flicked his gaze back to his quiet Bulgarian friend, who'd become a stalwart companion during their time on the Vultures. "I'm assuming Granger convinced you to tag along?"

Viktor grinned slightly, before taking another sip of his whiskey. "Da. Correct. Hermioninny wanted a, how you say, buffer? Plus, I am her boyfriend of the 3 years. This comes with the territory."

"Indeed it does, Viktor. For a girl not born in the wizarding world, she definitely knows how to play it." Arien said before pointing to Hermione, who was discussing with a motley crew of scholars, politicians, and entrepreneurs about the feasibility of using Muggleborns to strengthen ties to Muggle business firms, thus reinforcing the Wizard economy by proxy.

Viktor nodded in agreement. "I love the girl, but she sometimes talks above my head. It is very...endearing though."

"Some guys might be intimidated by that." Arien pointed out goodnaturedly.

"They are foolish then. A stronger partner means a better bond." Viktor replied sagely, before taking another drink from his glass.

"I couldn't agree more, my intimidating friend."

"ARIEENNNNNNN~!" Came the flirty and inebriated voice of his beloved Fleur from behind him. He turned to greet her, only for her to slam her lips against his in a battle for dominance...at least until Viktor coughed awkwardly. Fleur pulled back, before she hugged the tall Bulgarian tightly. "Viktor! It 'as been too long! I 'aven't seen you since the blowout game against the Chudleys on July 28th!"

Arien laughed a bit at Viktor's confused expression. "She means against the Chudley Cannons, that C tier team we played in the Champions League." At Viktor's still blank expression, he elaborated further. "We won by 700 points and you put their seeker in a coma." Arien deadpanned.

Viktor slapped his hand immediately. "AH! Yes them! In my defense, that vas the most obvious Wronski Feint I had ever done."

"Yeah, well, tell that to idiot who flew into the ground." Arien commented dryly, before pulling Fleur close to him, inhaling the scent of her cherry blossom shampoo on her hair. "Hey, baby."

Fleur move a bit to beam up at him. " 'Allo, mon amour. I missed you. Particularly when ze fools kept bothering me." Fleur then tapped her cheek thoughtfully. "I think I heard Blaise mention poisoning them with a box of basilisk venom muffins." (AN: yes this is an Arrest Development Reference)

Arien felt a bead of sweat drop down his forehead. "Yes, well, Blaise considers you his sister, so I doubt he takes kindly to idiots harassing you. I'd have stepped in if I felt you needed the help. You don't, since you're the brightest talent out of magical France in decades."

At this, Fleur puffed out her chest slightly, which had the intentional side effect of pressing her assets against her husband, prompting him to blush.

"O' me, o' my, dearest, you keep sweet talking me and I might just take you 'ome tonight." Fleur commented flirtingly, battering her eyelashes at her husband teasingly.

Arien felt a vein throb in his head. "You married me. That means I take you home every night. I haven't heard any complaints yet." Arien replied cooly, before placing his forehead against Fleurs.

Fleur leaned and kissed his forehead, before tracing a finger along his cheek. "Non non, you 'ave certainly 'ave not."

Viktor watched his friends with a smile, before he downed the rest of his firewhiskey. "Vell, my friends. As fun as this vas, I believe my Hermioninny could use rescuing. She seems socialed out." Viktor pointed to his girlfriend who was seeming more and more drained by social interaction. "Arien, we vill still go to that muggle football game in December, da? Between the Arsenal and the Manchester United?"

"Of course. Watching football tends to give me play ideas for our matches. I was thinking we could try to use you as an auxiliary playmaker for goals." Arien replied excitedly, before pulling his friend into a hug. "But I'll take more of that later. I'll see you later, my friend."

"Da. You vill. Take care." And with that, Viktor was off to play dashing knight to the rescue of his brilliant and introverted girlfriend, leaving Arien and Fleur alone.

They stood in silence for a few moments, before Fleur puffed her cheeks out in a cute pout.

"Arrrrrieeeeennnn. I'm 'ungry. Let's go to ze kitchen for snacks." Fleur pumped her fist excitedly, before stumbling a bit from the alcohol, with Arien catching her arm to halt the unwanted reunion with the floor. "Merci, mon amour."

"For you, my fleur d'argent? Always."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

December 25, 1600 hours, Paris, France...

The Champs de Elysee was reminiscent of a winter wonderland this time of year, with snow falling gently from the sky and glimmering in the city lights. Arien had decided to whisk his wife away for a romantic vacation over the holiday, something she had been very appreciated of after her initial annoyance from the last minute packing. After they'd settled their luggage at their hotel, they'd headed out to enjoy a leisurely walk and grab some dinner. She was currently walking beside him with her arms playfully tucked behind her back, wearing a furry hoodie, ear muffs, and some dragon leather pants. Her cheeks were slightly flush from the cold, though the smile she wore had enough warmth to brighten Arien's mood.

"No matter 'ow many times I come here, I cannot help but admire ze city in all its glory." Fleur said excitedly, before she wrapped herself around his left arm. He had made sure he was walking on the street side of the sidewalk, which prompted an eyeroll from his wife. "Zank you for zis, my love."

Arien felt the heat rising to his cheeks, before he turned his head to place a gentle kiss on top of his wife's head. "I'd do anything for you baby, and take you anywhere. I figured you'd want to spend some time on French soil after being around us savages for the better part of a year." Arien finished with a slightly teasing tone.

Immediately, Fleur's cheeks puffed out. "You shouldn't tease me, Arien. It iz not very nice. I am your cute wife." She said while poking him in the ribs with her index finger.

"Indeed, but you are also my cute wife that can throw fireballs. Meaning I know you can take it."

They shared a laugh, before they continued walking. After a few minutes in comfortable silence, they ended up on a crossover overlooking the Sienne River, before they gazed out over the partially frozen river.

"Zis...Zis is something I could do with you forever." Fleur whispered gently, before she laid her head on his shoulder, prompting Arien to wrap his arm around around her shoulder.

"So why don't we?" Arien asked curiously, an odd tone to his voice.

Fleur laughed a bit, before she shook her head. "Non, I did not mean literally, my love. We will have so many years together, I zink you may tire of me." She replied with an equally odd tone of voice.

"Not in a million years, Fleur. You understand me in ways that no one else has." Arien pulled her closer, before he discreetly threw up some privacy wards and a disillusionment charm.

"I actually brought you hear to ask you a question."

"If it's to marry you, I zink we covered zat already." Fleur commented jokingly, before pulling away enough to look her husband in the eye.

Arien laughed, but shook his head.

"No, but it is related to that. See, my family has a tradition that we do with our wedding rings, but we only do it after the first year of marriage. It's our own sort of...soul bond."

Fleur quirked an eyebrow curiously, but said nothing, waiting for Arien to continue.

"It's actually an offshoot of an ancient Sumerian ritual by some guy named Herpo. We place a small piece of each others' soul into our respective wedding rings. So we always have a piece of each other no matter where we go."

"Zat sounds...dangerous, but also beautiful."

"It is slightly. It could easily be branded as a type of dark magic, even though it stems from the magical bond between us. We don't have to do it if you don't want to though-" Arien tried to backtrack, but his wife silenced him with a soft kiss.

"Arien, zis is a secret tradition of your family. I will respect it. What must I do?"

Arien beamed at her, before he gently slid Fleur's wedding ring off her left hand, before he closed his eyes in concentration, his wand pointing at his chest. Fleur felt his magic fluctuate a bit, but before she could ask what he was doing, his eyes shot open and he began to speak Latin. "De anima, est fides. Amor vincit omnia." He began to draw a small bead of light from his chest with his wand, before he touched it to her wedding band. When he finished, he wiped a bead of sweat off his forehead. He then replaced her ring onto her left hand, though it now possessed a warmth and comforting presence it didn't have before. It felt like Arien, something that made her smile a bit, before she nodded for him to proceed.

"Alright, now you repeat the incantation I said, and pull deep within your magical core, my silver flower." He explained softly, before sliding his own ring off his hand, and held it out to her.

She carefully took it from him, before she did as Arien instructed. "De anima, est fides. Amor vincit omnia." She spoke, before she tugged at her own magical core with her wand. She then saw a bit of light on the tip of her wand, before she guided it to her husband's wedding band. She felt the piece of her magic hum a bit in the ring, before it settled. She then slide the ring back onto Arien's hand, before she intertwined their fingers together.

"So will you explain to me why ze incantation was Latin if the ritual was Sumerian?" Her question was a fairly reasonable one, though it made Arien laugh a bit nonetheless.

"The first person in my family line was a Roman, who ended up being one of the first to settle in France. He also was a scholar, and he discovered an ancient marriage ritual between magical families from the Sumerians, using the intense and pure feelings of love to place a piece of the soul between two people in love, to remind them that they are now two parts of the same whole. Unfortunately, at some point prior, a wizard named Herpo discovered you could prolong life by splitting the soul, though he used horrific ways to split his own soul. I don't really know the details of his actions, but that's the general history of the family tradition."

Fleur hummed thoughtfully, processing the information. "While I can see ze apprehension, ze idea of having more time with you is certainly a pleasant one, my love. And knowing zat I have a piece of you with me always is very comforting." Fleur finished, before she pulled him into a kiss, letting the snowflakes gently fall onto them, as the bustle of Paris went on in the background.

"I was so worried you'd freak out." Arien stated honestly, relief evident in his voice.

"You'd be surprised at some of ze darker magic my farther's side has practiced in the name of Justice, my beloved Arien." Fleur stated casually, raising an eyebrow at her husband. "You should know by know that I would only leave you if you became abusive. Something we both know you would rather die than do." She place a hand on his cheek, before rubbing gentle circles with her thumb.

"You must always remember dear. You are mine, just as I am yours, beloved. I will always choose you, Arien." She stated warmly, before her tone took on an annoyed quality. "And don't zink I'm going to let you go either, you imbecile."

Arien felt a bead of sweat form on his forehead at his wife's blunt declaration, before he shook his head. He felt his lips twist into a grin, before he pulled his wife into a tight hug.

"Je t'aime, mon fleur d'argente." He murmured into his hair, content to stand in the streetlight over the Sienne for as long as time would stand still.

"Je t'aime aussi, mon corbeau."

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February 15th, Hogwarts Castle, 3rd Floor Corridor, 1400 hours...

The term seemed to be flying by, Arien had observed calmly. Blaise had been more high-strung than usual with his constant networking attempts at Slughorn's little bimonthly shindigs, which had prompted Arien to slip a Calming Draught into his morning pumpkin juice. The result had been a somewhat dazed Blaise, and without him pushing Arien to various places around the Castle, Arien soon found himself on a leisurely walk through the castle halls with his wife, who was scheduled to patrol for any students skipping classes.

Fleur had a rather possessive death grip on his right hand, though her eyes darted around the corridor behind her thick rimmed glasses.

"You're glancing around like we could be attacked, baby." Arien noted with amusement, sending a teasing grin and a poke to the ribs her way.

"I am merely being vigilante! Plus, if there ARE students in ze halls, that means I can't do zis too much." Fleur shot him a look like he'd said something stupid.

Though, before he could ask what "zis" meant, she slammed her lips against his, and forced him against a wall, kissing him hungrily. Arien couldn't help but flush at her taking charge. It had become a game at some point, with them trying to one up the other with taking charge in intimacy. Apparently it was Fleur's day to surprise him.

"Arien~" His wife pause her assault on his lips to kiss his neck and whisper in his ear.

"Um, y-yes dear?" Arien couldn't help but gulp audibly at her tone. She was going to kill him with her actions at this rate!

"I think it's time for zis professor to punish you for being a naughty student~."

'Holy shit.' Arien thought through the fireworks show going off in his head. His fantasies were finally coming true! He was finally going to-

A knockback jinx crashed into a wall down the hallway, followed by some raised voices down the hallway and some crashes of display cases. This had the annoying side-effect of making Fleur and himself leap away from each other, before they shared an annoyed look. Both sighed, before rushing down the hallway.

The scene before them reminded Arien of his fourth year when he'd met Caroline. Before him, a Slytherin first year boy was standing in front of a Hufflepuff girl, wand out and pointed at none other than Draco Malfoy. Arien felt his eye twitch. This little weasel had cockblocked him. He would pay dearly. However, he nudged his wife first, to let her know he wanted to observe a bit first.

"Leave her alone! She didn't do anything to you!" The first year boy tried to sound brave, but his voice was a little shakey, likely from facing down an older student with a reputation for being a bully. Several of the suits of armor were scattered across the ground, as well as some minor spell marks.

"Oh, you misguided little first year. She's a mudblood. She doesn't belong here." Draco stated as if it was obvious why he was there.

"That doesn't mean a thing! We all have magic, and we all have the same right to learn how to use it!"

Arien gave the kid mental props. He'd already realized how stupid pureblood bigotry was.

"That's a lie. Purebloods have been the forefront every major magical discovery and are always the most powerful!" Malfoy shot back hotly. Arien groaned with annoyance at the turn his day was taking. His wife had apparently heard enough, coughing to get Malfoy's attention.

"Mr. Malfoy. Spell usage in the corridors iz forbidden. As is harassing younger students." Fleur stated in her teacher voice, which Arien loveeeeeed.

"So what half-breed? What are you going to do about it-" Malfoy said as he turned around paled when he realized Arien was with Fleur.

"Oh, Malfoy. Ever the delightful douche. Let's see, since you only really seem to grasp things in archaic terms. Insulting an the wife to the future head of a Noble house AND threatening children? That doesn't look well for the House Malfoy." Arien commented with a vicious grin on his face, enjoying as the color paled from the obnoxious pureblood's face. "Not to mention your dear old dad was an assmuppet for a halfblood. Bet old Moldyshorts didn't broadcast that too much, huh?"

"Wha-"

"I tell you what. You write my wife a formal letter of apology for insulting her honor, with a lump of galleons, and I won't douse you alternatingly in basilisk venom and phoenix tears for what you just said to my wife."

Malfoy nodded furiously, before shooting off down the hall way in a reminiscent manner of Speedy Gonzales.

Arien was tempted to chase him a bit, but he heard the girl crying a bit, so he walked over to her with his wife in tow.

"Hey there, little one. That mean old bully is gone now. You guys are safe." He spoke in a soft and reassuring tone, placing a hand on each kid's head, patting them gently.

"Ms. DC?" The Hufflepuff girl asked between sniffles, prompting Fleur to kneel down and wrap the girl in a gentle hug. She knew first hand about the callous words of the foolish over something as meaningless as blood purity.

"Shh, child. I am here. It's okay now." Fleur shot Arien a meaningful glance, before flicking her gaze to the boy for a moment. Arien nodded.

"Hey buddy. Let's give them a moment of privacy, yeah?" He clapped the younger boy on the shoulder, before motioning to follow him. The walked a little ways away, before Arien threw up some privacy wards around his wife and the young girl so they could talk freely.

"So what happened exactly?" Arien asked the boy casually to break the silence.

"That blond bully called Miranda a m- not nice word, and shot some spells around her. That's when I stepped in."

"Hmm, yes, that does sound like Draco alright. He's probably pissed because Astoria refuses to break up with the Creevey kid, and date him instead of a 'muggleborn'." Arien finished with sarcastic air quotes. Malfoy still didn't take well to two of the most desirable purebloods dating outside the house, apparently.

"He was a jerk, and Miranda is my friend. I wasn't going to sit back and do nothing." The boy finished with fire in his eyes.

Arien nodded in agreement. "You did good, kid. I'm assuming you used the levitation spell to block some of Malfoy's jinxes. Clever. What's your name?"

The boy looked up at Arien, a bashful blush on the kids face from the praise. "It's Malcolm, sir."

Arien flicked his gaze down to his wife, who nodded when they made eye contact.

"Well, Malcolm, why don't we get you and Miranda down to Madame Pomfrey for a slight check up? Just to make sure you two are okay."

Malcolm nodded quickly, before grabbing Arien's arm and tugging him back towards the first year girl and his wife. Arien couldn't help but smile at the kid's enthusiasm.

The walk to the infirmary was uneventful, though the two first year students chatted animatedly about everything go on in their year, to which Arien and Fleur made sure to express interest in. After being examined by the healer, and given each of them a swing of calming drought, Arien and his wife dropped them off at their next class, waving goodbye before closing the door. Arien shook his head and smiled at the kids' antics, before he began to make his way down the hall towards the kitchen.

It was after about a minute he realized that his wife was gazing at him intently with a soft smile on her features.

"What's up, baby?"

"Nozzing. I was just thinking how good of a father you will be someday."

Arien said nothing at first, but he wrapped an arm around his wife.

"And you, my beautiful flower, will be the best mother ever."

When Arien saw Fleur's face light up like a Christmas tree, he knew he'd said the right thing.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

June 30th, Hogwarts Quidditch Pitch, 1600 hours...

Arien stood looking out at the pitch he'd played on for the last 6 years, unable to stop the feeling of nostalgic melancholy. He'd managed to best Potter's team, and he was due to start full time professionally for the Vultures in a week. Krum had kept their team together in his absence, but the club was anxious to get Arien on the roster full time after his performances for both house and the club during the summer seasons.

He had been so wrapped up in his musings, he never heard his wife and his friends show up, at least until Fleur hugged him from behind. He turned himself around to see his wife, Tracey, Blaise, and shockingly enough, Potter and Greenegrass.

"Came to butt in on my musing, eh?" Arien addressed the group jokingly, before placed a kiss on Fleur's forehead.

Blaise was the first one to respond. "Well, we couldn't just leave you to brood alone, could we? You're my golden goose to my bid for Minister. I need you 100% brood free." Arien laughed at his brother's joke, before he turned his inquisitive gaze to Harry and Daphne.

"I just, uh, wanted to say thanks. For everything. You were a rival on the pitch, and I'll miss playing against you." Harry said honestly, extending a hand out towards Arien. Arien grasped it gently, and shook with the younger dark haired boy.

"Likewise. If you don't go pro, I'll be pissed. Viktor says you're the only one who gives him a run for his money. So I better see you on the pro circuit in two years, Potter." Arien teased goodnaturedly, a grin resting on his face.

"Fine, fine. I'll talk it over with my agent here." Harry replied dryly as he jerked a thumb back to Daphne who blushed, and mumbled something that sounded like 'idiot'. "Just try not to get injured before I get there. Hate for you to have to retire early, old man."

Arien bristled at the comment, whereas Blaise, Tracey, and Fleur found it hilarious, laughing like hyenas. Fleur stopped when Arien pointed out she was older than him, prompting her to conjure some fireballs on her finger tips. Daphne and Harry said their goodbyes, leaving the long time friends together.

"So this is it, yeah? The end of our school days." Arien stated bittersweetly, running a hand through his hair as he watched the sun set over the Black Lake from the quidditch stands.

"If you think for even second, dear brother, that Tracey and I didn't already buy us all a house in Bulgaria to live together, you are a fool. So no need for any waterworks. We aren't going anywhere." Blaise said, trying to keep his own emotions in check.

"Shut up! I bet you wanted to cry too!" Arien said, tears prickling at the corner of his eyes, getting up in Blaise's face.

"Oh yeah! Maybe I do! My evil plan is coming together and I'm going to be rich!" Blaise said while also starting to cry. They then rushed each other and hugged each other before wailing like banshees in the sunset.

Fleur and Tracey shared a look, and though they shook their heads, the small smiles on their faces betrayed their feelings.

"Idiots." They muttered, before pulling their loves apart, and walking hand in hand back towards the castle, eager to see how the future would pan out.

Xxxxxxxxx

**So it took a while to get this. Sorry about that. I just didn't have any inspiration for a while. I should be able to wrap this up, though I don't know if I can do two more chapters this long. I'll say the epilogues will probably be around 8-10 pages each. Hope that's okay. Either way, you guys should be satisfied. **

**Until next time readers.**

**Raizen out. **


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